00:00Nadru, the long, crunchy, edible stem of the lotus plant, is an essential part of Kashmiri
00:11cuisine and is always in high demand. Harvesting nadru in winter is one of the toughest jobs,
00:18as farmers spend hours standing waist-deep in freezing water, bending repeatedly to pull
00:25out the stems from thick, muddy beds. Farmers in the Sangam water bodies, traditionally
00:31one of the richest regions for lotus stem cultivation, are not just battling the winter
00:36chill, but also grappling with lower yields. The reason, they point out, is reduced water
00:43flow from the Sindh river, which enters the region from Gandharbal. Lower yields should
00:49have pushed up prices, but farmers say that hasn't happened either, adding to their woe.
00:55We don't get so much water here. You can see how much water is here.
01:03Do you know how much water is here?
01:04Do you know how much water is in the past year?
01:07No, this year has been a lot of work since the last year, because it is less. There is
01:16water. We had water from Gandharbal. We had water from Gandharbal, which was sent to the Gandharbal.
01:21This is all, the 10-day아 project. When we call it, we have water from the government. We have
01:24water from the head to the boundary. We can be able to plant the forest. We can be able to
01:29increase water from the trees. We will bring this trees to the trees and keep them in the
01:45power of the trees. But there is no way of burning. We have to destroy it here. Yes, the
01:47The shrinking of Gandharbal's water channels is a worrying trend, according to environmentalists,
02:03which could potentially threaten the very survival of Nadru cultivation in the region.
02:09And if that happens, it would take away a major livelihood source for farmers in Kashmir.
