Kashmir’s Rivers Run Dry: How Mining Threatens Farmers and Ecosystems

In Lasjan, on the outskirts of Srinagar, Muhammad Ashraf looks over his paddy field. The soil lies cracked under the Himalayan sun, and the canal that once brought Jhelum’s waters to his land is bone-dry. “There’s no water to sow rice this year,” he says. What should have been green fields thick with young shoots and ready for harvest in September is now barren land.

Ashraf’s story is no longer unusual. Across Kashmir’s valley, from Pulwama to Shopian, farmers face the same reality. Droughts have become frequent, rainfall is in decline, and 2024 marked the driest year in five decades with a 29% deficit, marking the fiftieth consecutive year of below-normal rain. But farmers in Kashmir also say it’s not just the changing climate threatening their livelihoods. Rampant sand mining, often illegal, has gouged riverbeds so deep that water no longer flows into traditional canals, cutting off lifelines that once sustained their fields.

Rivers that no longer flow as they should

Kashmir, in India’s far north, is a fertile valley cradled by snow-capped mountains. The Jhelum and its tributaries: the Veshav, Sindh, Rambiara, and Romshi, are Kashmir’s arteries. They irrigate paddy fields, sustain apple orchards, and recharge countless springs, producing more than 2 million metric tonnes of apples and nearly half a million metric tonnes of rice each year.

The apple industry alone generates about ₹8,000 crore annually, sustaining much of the region’s economy and livelihoods. “They’ve dug the Jhelum so deep that water no longer reaches us through local canals like the Rambiara,” says Muzaffar Rashid Bhat from Lethpora in Pulwama, a rice-growing hub.

Erratic monsoons and back-to-back droughts have worsened the crisis, but farmers insist illegal sand mining has hollowed the river. Irrigation officials point to climate change yet quietly admit mining continues unchecked. Where steady rivers once fed the fields, only shallow trickles remain and with them, collapsing yields that force farmers like Ashraf to cut back cultivation or abandon rice altogether.

The Pulwama district’s most recent Survey Report, available on its official website, dates back to 2018. It specifies where mining is permitted and under what limits. But farmers and activists say reality looks very different as unchecked extraction from rivers and streams is disrupting irrigation channels and lowering water availability for paddy.  

Peer Manzoor, Executive Engineer of Irrigation in Pulwama, blamed climate change for reduced water discharge but conceded that sand mining in the Jhelum continues. “We don’t permit sand mining near the irrigation schemes,” he said. Yet farmers in Pulwama and its neighbouring districts report ongoing sand mining that disrupts irrigation and farming.

Mining scale and its impact on water: Digging deeper, draining faster

Sand mining is not new to Kashmir, but its present scale is staggering. Across the world, up to 50 billion tonnes of sand and gravel are extracted annually, and Kashmir has become part of this surge. Here, operations often dig as deep as 50 feet —far beyond the legal limit of three. The impact is devastating: in south Kashmir, aquifers have been pierced, springs have dried, and entire communities are losing dependable water. In Baramulla, mining takes place alarmingly close to wildlife sanctuaries, disturbing fragile Himalayan ecosystems.

Official data shows sand and other minor minerals extraction doubled from 4.74 lakh metric tonnes in 2021–22 to 11.42 lakh in 2022–23, driven by infrastructure projects like the Delhi–Katra motorway. In the Rambiara and Romshi sub-basins of south Kashmir, excavations have pierced shallow aquifers, lowering water tables and drying up springs and wells. Entire communities are losing access to reliable water.

The invisible loss is even greater. When riverbeds are gouged, their ability to recharge groundwater diminishes, leaving wells empty and villages without reliable supply. Official figures show sand and mineral extraction in Kashmir more than doubled within a year from 4.74 lakh metric tonnes in 2021–22 to 11.42 lakh in 2022–23—driven by infrastructure projects like the Delhi–Katra motorway.

A recent report  also counted 453 stone and hot-wet mix plants and 113 licensed minor mineral units operating in the region. In Baramulla alone alongside the Jhelum, a dozen function within a kilometre of the Lachipora Wildlife Sanctuary, which is home to endangered Himalayan species like the markhor and Asiatic black bear. Studies confirm the toll: noise, dust, and runoff altering soils, harming agriculture, and weakening already stressed ecosystems.

Ripple Effect: Fisheries and farmers in the same storm

The damage ripples beyond fields. The Veshav River, once famous for trout, now runs choked with silt and stone-crusher pollution. Breeding grounds vanish as sand and gravel are hauled away.

“Fish numbers are falling. You can’t recreate a river on a farm,” says Zahoor Ahmad Shah, a veteran in Kashmir’s fisheries sector. Over 93,000 people depend on fisheries and produce 20,000 tons annually. The Fisheries Department operates 534 trout units and provides support to over 17,000 families. Yet trout stocks are shrinking. As hydrogeologist Dr. Sarah Qazi warns: “If we don’t protect recharge zones, we’re leaving a broken system for the next generation.” Farmers and fishers, though in different trades, are bound by the same threat—vanishing water.

Governance gaps: Rules on paper, rivers on sale

In 2016, the High Court banned mining deeper than three metres or closer than 25 metres from riverbanks. On paper, the penalties are strict. The law requires officials to seize minerals along with the vehicles and equipment used. Offenders can only reclaim them after paying the mineral’s cost, royalty charges, and a minimum fine of ₹10,000.

In June 2024, the government reported 6,219 seizures and penalties worth ₹16.79 crore. But on the ground, illegal mining shows no signs of slowing. The National Green Tribunal fined the J&K government ₹1 crore in 2022 for failing to check violations.

Korel village, home to about 1,100 people across 253 households, lies just a few kilometres from the Veshaw river, a tributary of the Jhelum. By day, it looks like any other quiet settlement in Kashmir. But at night, the riverbed turns into a mining ground. Heavy machinery digs deep into the earth, flouting rules and pushing the village into the shadow of constant activity.

Even government officials admit violations are rampant but cite “pressure from higher authorities,” as a reason for weak enforcement. “It’s willful vandalism,” says a senior officer from the Geology and Mining Department, requesting anonymity.

Livelihoods threatened by mining ban

The mining ban has also created tension. At Ganderbal district in Central Kashmir, women recently staged protests when authorities halted sand extraction on the Sindh River. “We don’t want charity. We’ve taken loans, bought tippers, and worked hard for years. Now they’ve stopped everything without giving us options. Let us work and feed our children,” says Saleema, a mother of three. Many families who invested in vehicles and equipment now struggle to repay debts without steady earnings. Authorities met the protesters and promised to raise their concerns with higher officials.

For families who rely on manual mining, the trade is survival. But while it provides short-term income, it risks undermining the far larger water-dependent economy of agriculture and orchards. Springs once used for irrigation, like Arbal Nag and Bulbul Nag, are already drying. Apples and paddy worth thousands of crores may be the ultimate cost.

Kashmir’s mining revenue touched ₹181.04 crore over the past five years, but the environmental costs may prove far greater. While extraction brings short-term income, it threatens agriculture worth thousands of crores each year. The apple industry alone contributes over ₹8,000 crore annually,  but orchards depend on reliable water supplies that mining is drying up. Various reports link riverbed mining to drying springs such as Arbal Nag and Bulbul Nag, which once irrigated farmland and orchards

Experts warn that a balance must be struck. The Government of India’s Sustainable Sand Mining Management Guidelines (2016) recommend restricting riverbed mining to one metre in groundwater recharge areas, along with rainwater harvesting, check dams, and afforestation programmes to restore water systems. Without action, Kashmir risks losing both its water resources and the communities tied to them. Trout stocks are already under pressure, and further damage could imperil not just the rivers, but the livelihoods and food security they support.

The District Mineral Officer did not respond to our multiple calls. The story will be updated if a response is received.

This story is produced as part of the India Water Portal Regional Story Fellowship 2025.