Deficient rainfall and rising temperatures have exposed the vulnerability of rain-fed agriculture in Assam. Soaring temperatures have left leaves of paddy plants turning yellow before plants could bloom, affecting a large number of farmers in different parts of the state. Insufficient rainfall and excessive heat have already led to a 11% drop in tea production in the state, which is a cause for concern. Unprecedented autumn heat is an ominous sign of extreme weather events increasing in the state in the coming years. Without assured irrigation in farm fields, agricultural activities will become non-remunerative for more farmers. Withdrawal from agricultural activities will aggravate the unemployment problem and will trigger more outmigration of unemployed youth from rural areas in search of alternative livelihoods. Unchecked migration of people from rural areas upsets urban demography and makes cities, towns, and other urban settlements unsustainable by further reducing their carrying capacities. It is a paradox that despite Assam being blessed with the mighty Brahmaputra River and its vast network of tributaries and thousands of wetlands, the majority of farmers continue to depend on rains for agricultural production. Currently less than 13% of cultivated land in the state is irrigated. To make things worse, nearly 40% of the installed irrigation schemes are lying defunct. The Irrigation Department has set 2047 as the target year for covering the entire 27 lakh hectares of cultivable land in the state with assured irrigation for every crop season. This means that farmers will continue to be heavily dependent on rains for raising crops on their farmland over the next two decades. If farmers are unable to boost production or if agriculture becomes unsustainable for them, then the household income of the majority of farm families may either remain stagnant or decline if the frequency of extreme weather events increases due to climate change impact. Unless the income of farm households does not increase, the consumption level in rural areas cannot increase. Multiple waves of floods destroying standing crops push small and marginal farmers to the penury, and when they are hit by insufficient rainfall and unprecedented heat, then all projections of economic growth in rural Assam go haywire. The Irrigation Department attributes the reason behind a large number of irrigation schemes lying inoperative to lack of proper maintenance of canals, pumps, and motors, erratic power supply and low voltages, theft of pumps and motors, electrical conductors and accessories, siltation at the intake point and diversion of the river course, and frequent flood damage. Collection or service charge from farmers against irrigating their cropland is also abysmally low. Due to the high establishment cost, the service charges are also quite high, which makes it difficult for poor and marginal farmers to pay them, which explains the poor service charge realisation. Apart from meeting the operation and maintenance costs, the water charges are also targeted to meet a part of the capital cost. Reducing water charges can reduce burden on farmers and increase realisation of service charges that are essential to the operation and maintenance of the operative schemes. This can be possible only when the government shoulders the burden of capital cost and does not pass any burden of it to farmers, the majority of whom are small and marginal with a poor capital base. Awareness needs to be raised among farmers on sharing the collective responsibility of protection of irrigation pump accessories and electrical components from theft and misuse. The department fixing accountability and responsibility on officials and employees concerned is critical to improve maintenance through increased surveillance against any damage caused by miscreants and timely measures to address issues of river course change or siltation at intake points. Often these problems are left unattended for prolonged periods due to laxity on the part of engineers and employees of the department. Application of digital technology and introduction of dashboards to improve real-time monitoring can help the department to keep track of things on the ground and initiate timely redressal measures. Patronising traditional water governance system practice among farmers living along India-Bhutan border areas to use waters flowing down to Assam plains from Bhutan hills to irrigate their cropland can be expected to improve water availability in areas. Water levels of rivers along this belt fall during the dry season, making surface irrigation systems installed on these rivers inoperative while traditional systems based on water flow from streams in the hills keep running. Unprecedented heat and alarming drop in rainfall during this autumn has reminded us of the importance of creating infrastructure for rainwater harvesting to catch raindrops during the monsoon and make use of stored water for irrigation during dry days. Climate change mitigation discourse to address issues of scanty rainfall during crop seasons also needs to focus on some policy interventions aimed at food security. Cost-benefit analysis of the free rice supply scheme and that of boosting agricultural production through assured irrigation can help policy planners to articulate pragmatic schemes.