Learn to be efficient

India must try to emulate Israel's excellence in water use

Since the establishment of diplomatic links between India and Israel in 1992, relations between the two countries have steadily evolved into a multi-dimensional partnership. Narendra Modi is the first Indian prime minister to visit Israel and his meeting with his counterpart, Benjamin Netanyahu, can be expected to deepen mutual cooperation in areas such as macroeconomic management, trade liberalisation, environment protection and the fight against terrorism. Such a push will stimulate bilateral trade and investments that have remained more or less static. For instance, defence ties between the two countries can be expanded further. The fact that India is one of the world’s major importers of defence equipment and Israel is already one of the top four military hardware suppliers to it is a clear indication that this alliance can be further strengthened. Greater collaboration in the use of drones and space technology for defence and anti-terrorism activities can help further cement the bilateral relationship. But beyond the diplomatic and strategic ties, Mr Modi’s three-day sojourn can prove highly rewarding if it further enhances bilateral cooperation in fields such as precision farming and water management. These are areas where Israel excels.

Efficient use of available water and augmenting its supplies through recycling of saline and waste water continue to be among the key areas for advancing mutual collaboration. Israel was a water-starved country at the time of its formation about 70 years ago with 60 per cent of its landscape being desert and the rest arid. The rainfall, too, was on the decline. Yet, it has not only managed to meet the water needs of its growing population but is also exporting it to its neighbours. Apart from desalination of sea water, which now accounts for about a third of Israel’s water consumption, Tel Aviv has developed remarkable technologies to extract water from the air and make it potable even at places which lack any source of fresh water. India has plenty of such areas and these technologies can potentially help meet the drinking water needs of the Indian people.

Similarly, much on the lines of what the Indian PM has urged Indian agriculturalists to achieve when he gave the motto “more crop per drop”, Israel has made notable breakthroughs in getting high crop yields with minimum use of inputs such as fertilisers and pesticides. Israeli expertise can help India achieve a tremendous boost in farm productivity. An Indo-Israel agriculture project is already in operation at several places to showcase precision farming techniques. However, its impact has remained confined largely to the close-by areas partly because of the capital intensive nature of the technologies involved and partly because of the incompetence of the Indian extension agencies in relaying these lessons to the farmers tilling the soil. Besides, most small and marginal farmers, who need such techniques the most, cannot afford them because of high initial investments. Indian farm research bodies are also working on refining drip irrigation and other micro-irrigation systems to make them affordable for farmers. Joint Indo-Israeli efforts, which hopefully will be buttressed during Mr Modi’s current visit, can go a long way in providing Indian farmers with the cutting edge technical support that at present eludes them.