Some farmers are considering migrating to other places in search of livelihood owing to the drought in Bidar district, J. Jayaram, chief executive officer of Prawarda, a non-governmental organisation here, has said.
He told The Hindu that he visited a few villages in Basavakalyan taluk of the district recently and found that the crops had failed owing to moisture stress and inadequate rainfall. Those villages were also facing water scarcity.
He said he had received reports that a few farmers were preparing to leave the district in search of better avenues. Mr. Jayaram said that during his visits to Mudbi and Yerandi villages in the taluk, he found that wells were fast drying up. “At the moment, I can say that some farmers are busy trying to find other options outside the district,” he added.
However, many farmers and the people in general were apprehensive of migrating because of problems they might encounter in other places, he said.
Mr. Jayaram said that before beginning the migration process, the people would have to make sure they found jobs elsewhere. The global economic condition was not so encouraging and hence they might have to wait.
Officials at the office of the Deputy Conservator of Forests, Bidar, said that to generate employment opportunities for people, afforestation programmes would be taken up in the district under the National Rural Employment Guarantee Act. A Rs. 10-crore action plan had been prepared for this.
Aurad Tahsildar Prashanth Nalwar said, “the taluk has received good rainfall in the past two days. The administration has made drinking water arrangements and has opened fodder banks to supply fodder to cattle.” He said, “If the taluk receives another few spells of rain, the people should be able to coast along for another year.”
