Farming in Our Blood: The Arain Contribution to Agriculture in Punjab

Drive out of Lahore towards Kasur early on a winter morning and you will pass fields of cauliflower, spinach and carrots being harvested before the sun is properly up. Many of the families working those fields have done the same work for four or five generations. For the Arain community, farming is not just an occupation. It is part of how families describe themselves.

Small plots, careful work

The traditional strength of Arain farmers was intensive cultivation on relatively small pieces of land. Instead of relying on one crop a year, families grew vegetables in rotation, kept fruit trees along the edges of fields and sold fresh produce in nearby markets. This kind of farming needs constant attention: watering at the right time, weeding by hand, protecting young plants from frost and getting crops to market quickly.

It also needs good knowledge of soil and water. Older farmers can often tell you which part of a field holds water longest, or which variety of tomato does better after a wet monsoon, simply from years of watching. That practical knowledge was passed from parents to children in the fields rather than in classrooms.

Canals and new villages

In the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, large areas of western Punjab were brought under irrigation by new canals. Families from more crowded districts were settled on the new land, and Arain cultivators were among them. Villages around today's Faisalabad, Sahiwal, Okara and Sargodha grew out of that period. Many families still use the old chak numbers when they talk about where they are from.

Challenges farmers face today

The fields may look similar, but the problems have changed. Farmers across Punjab talk about the same issues:

• Land being divided into smaller and smaller pieces as it passes between generations.
• Rising costs of fertiliser, seed, diesel and electricity.
• Falling groundwater in many areas and more unpredictable weather.
• Middlemen taking a large share of the price before produce reaches the consumer.
• Young people leaving farming for jobs in cities or abroad.

Practical ideas that are working

There is no single solution, but some approaches are helping families keep farming profitable.

Saving water. Laser land levelling, bed-and-furrow planting and drip irrigation for orchards and vegetables can cut water use considerably. Provincial agriculture departments have run programmes that share part of the cost of such equipment, so it is worth asking the local agriculture office what is currently available.

Getting advice. Agricultural universities and the provincial extension services publish crop calendars, recommended varieties and pest warnings. Many of them now share this on mobile phones and social media. A short call to the local extension officer before sowing can save a season's losses.

Selling together. When a few families pool their produce, they can hire one vehicle, deal directly with larger buyers and negotiate better prices. Informal groups of neighbours have done this for years; it works best when everything is written down and money is handled openly.

Adding value. Grading and packing vegetables properly, drying or preserving surplus fruit, or keeping a few dairy animals can give a household income that does not depend on one harvest.

Keeping young people connected to the land

Not every young person will become a farmer, and that is fine. But young people with education in agriculture, food technology, business or IT can bring a great deal back to family land: record keeping, online selling, better use of machinery and new crops. Families that encourage this mix of old knowledge and new skills are often the ones whose farms do best.

Arain Community Pakistan hopes to bring together farmers, agricultural graduates and experienced growers so that useful knowledge is shared. If you are a farmer with experience to share, or a young person looking for guidance in agriculture, please get in touch through our contact page.