The correct answer is 70%. Explanation & Key Takeaways: • 70% of the state's irrigation water is consumed by sugarcane cultivation. • This high consumption is highly disproportionate as sugarcane occupies only 4% of the total cropped land in Maharashtra. • Economic Backbone vs. Environmental Cost: While sugarcane is the economic and political backbone of Western Maharashtra, its high water-intensive nature poses a significant challenge to the state's overall water security, especially in drought-prone regions. Related Concepts: • Irrigation Crisis: This mismanagement exacerbates the state's irrigation crisis, which is already burdened by low overall coverage (18-20%) and geographical constraints like hard basaltic rock. • Other Water-Intensive Crops: While other crops like rice are also water-intensive, they are typically grown in high-rainfall zones like the Konkan coast, unlike sugarcane which is heavily cultivated in relatively drier parts of Western Maharashtra using canal irrigation. • Policy Implications: This data point is often cited in policy discussions about changing cropping patterns, promoting micro-irrigation and ensuring more equitable water distribution among all crops and regions.