While the district administration is trying to supply drinking water to people using tankers, there seems to be no such measures for horticulture farmers of the district, who are forced to employ tankers by their own means. With the rising mercury, water sources are depleting posing a challenge to horticulture crops, such as lemon, pomegranate and grapes.
Lemon farmers of Indi taluk, the largest producer of lemons in the State, are the worst-affected facing acute shortage for drinking and for plants.
“Lemon plants continuously need water. If the plants go dry, then it is bigger problem for the farmers as they have to replant the saplings which takes over three years to reach fruit-bearing period. Therefore, at any cost, the farmers have to water these plants to save them from withering away,” said Arungouda Biradar, a farmer of Atharga village of Indi taluk.
Having spent over ₹5 lakh already on drilling borewells to save his 500 plants of lemon, he is now spending money on tankers to keep the plants alive till monsoon.
Eerappa Badiger, another farmer, is carrying water in plastic pots and watering his plants.
He has already lost nearly 100 plants and is trying to save the remaining 50-odd plants.
They said that during the last summer, when Chief Minister Siddaramaiah visited the farms, he had promised to consider giving financial aid to lemon farmers by supplying water through tankers.
“But that promises has not been materialised till today. Having no choice, we are bearing the cost of tankers to save our plants,” Mr. Biradar said.
They added that the government should at least waive loans borrowed by the farmers which would reduce their burden.
