NEW DELHI: As the Yamuna swelled past the danger mark this week, the water swallowed not just homes but also the livelihoods of thousands of families dependent on farming across Delhi’s floodplains.
Nearly 10,000 families, mostly migrants from Bareilly and Badaun in UP, reside along the river. Over the decades, they transformed fertile floodplains into vegetable farms that supplied city markets. Today, those fields lie submerged.
“We have seen the destruction of our harvest,” said Mahesh Kushwaha, pointing to his drowned crops. Mahesh’s family has farmed Yamuna Khadar near Mayur Vihar since 2002. “This year, we will have no income. But we still have to pay rent, or face harassment.”
The farmers are mostly sharecroppers, paying around Rs 20,000 per bigha as rent to local “owners”. The Delhi Development Authority, however, insists that the land belongs to the government. The dispute has left the community vulnerable—facing eviction notices, routine demolitions, and now, the fury of floods.
At makeshift relief camps near the river, despair mixes with resilience. Families dragged tractors, livestock, and what belongings they could save, only to find space scarce. Small shops once run from jhuggis—selling groceries, snacks, or barber services—have shifted into the camps.
A barber said that business had collapsed. “People don’t have money. We sell goods and services on credit. We don’t know if anyone can pay, but it would be wrong to deny basics at such a time.”
With the harvest gone, many families will rely entirely on relief rations. Some have tried daily-wage work, but with limited options, most return to the riverbanks. “The Yamuna gives us both life and destruction,” another farmer said. Farming is the only skill most families have.