Overexploitation of groundwater is a cause for concern both in Kolar and Chickballapur districts, Bharatiya Kisan Union secretary Narasimhappa has said.
There are over 1,30,000 pumpsets in the district while compared to only about 30,000 pumpsets a decade ago, Mr. Narasimhappa said. This, coupled with continuous drawing of water from the ground, has compounded water scarcity in the region, he remarked.
He was delivering a keynote address at a seminar on the role of media in preserving groundwater and development organised by the Karnataka Media Academy in association with the District Working Journalists Union and the Information Department here on Monday.
Though the district receives rain for about 100 days, effectively it rains for only about 100 hours in all, he said. The Palar river basin provides only 11 per cent of water required for the region, he said.
Paramashivaiah report
Inaugurating the seminar, Union Minister of State K.H. Muniyappa said that the State government was committed to implementing the G.S. Paramashivaiah report and the Yethinahole project to provide permanent irrigation facility to the arid central Karnataka region.
Meeting sought
He urged Chief Minister Siddaramaiah to convene a meeting of people’s representatives and organisations to discuss the issue.
The speakers discussed in detail the issue of encroachment of tanks and lakes and the means to conserving the water bodies.
The speakers held the governments and politicians mainly responsible for the disappearance of the tanks beside blaming people’s greed.
Media Academy chairman M.A. Ponnappa spoke. MLA Varthur Prakash presided over the function. MLAs K.M. Narayanaswamy and Y. Ramakka and Information Department senior assistant director C.M. Ranga Reddy participated.
