Mudukappa Kattikar of Mole village in Chikkodi taluk is no longer a farmer whose fortunes are likely to be often marred by the vagaries of nature such as drought. For him, like other farmers of the village, the situation has changed and there is renewed hope of better farm incomes hereafter.
The positive sentiment stems from the ₹2.2-crore lift irrigation project financed by the Karnataka Vikas Grameena Bank (KVGB), which was formally inaugurated by its chairman S. Ravindran last week. Under the scheme, nearly 109 acres will benefit from irrigation facility.
Mr. Kattikar and his brothers were finding hard to sustain their agricultural activities. The 10 acres of dryland shared by the family had, in a way, become a liability. They had no option but to depend on rain, which often played truant with the village. Hereafter, they have assured irrigation.
Mr. Ravindran asked the farmers to adopt integrated farming practices for the best results. They have now been provided with critical irrigation facilities from the Krishna river flowing 10 km from the village. The bank has also assured them of all possible assistance in any part of the district.
Judicious and scientific utilisation of the available water, precise irrigation technology, and watershed development works to save sugarcane crop could provide the answer to recurring droughts, Mr. Ravindran said.
Forming a group
The unique aspect of this lift irrigation scheme is that 56 farmers of the village came forward as a group to install an irrigation facility. The Mole branch of KVGB welcomed them and extended a loan of ₹1.8 crore. The remaining investment was shared by the stakeholders, KVGB public relations officer Ullas Gunaga said.
Ghoraknath, a progressive farmer, said it was a first of its kind move in the district, facilitating land holding-wise irrigation water for farmers. This eliminates possible disputes on the sharing of water.
Sidagonda Pujari, who owns 12 acres of land, said he was optimistic of what the future might hold for him and other farmers of the village.
