Water crisis stares hard in the face for those residing on the outskirts of the city and in rural parts of Ranga Reddy district. Already facing short supply of municipal water, these areas will soon have to grapple with the plummeting groundwater reserves too.
Except in Kulkacherla, groundwater levels in all other mandals of the Ranga Reddy district have dropped considerably. While the decrease is high in drought-prone pockets of the district, it could be cause for concern in other areas too, especially during summer months.
In more than 15 mandals, the water levels have dropped by more than five ‘Metres Below Ground Level' (MBGL) in comparison with the levels of the same period last year. Some among them have clocked over eight metres' decrease. The drop is very high at over 11 metres in Shahbad mandal-- from last year's depth of 4.95 metres to the present 16.5 metres.
In the suburban areas, Medchal tops the list with a drop of 6.54 metres, with Malkajgiri and Shamshabad following close behind.
In depth to groundwater levels, however, Yacharam recorded the maximum at 18.37 MBGL. In all, 19 mandals of Ranga Reddy district have recorded water levels at depths of over 10 metres. They include Hayathnagar, Malkajgiri, Marpalle, Medchal, Nawabpet, Pudur, Shahabad, Shankarpalle, Uppal, Vikarabad, Yacharam, Yalal, Shamshabad, Ibrahimpatnam, Pargi, Rajendranagar, Manchal, Kandukur, and Maheshwaram.
Excessive exploitation
The plummeting levels are attributed to excessive exploitation of groundwater for agriculture, as the district received paltry rainfall during the crop season. All mandals put together, the district's average depth to water level is recorded at 10.55 metres for the month of October this year. When compared to last year's average of 6.17 metres, it has increased by 4.38 metres.
However, officials from the Groundwater Department say the situation is not alarming. The levels as recorded at the end of this Water Year are the best in the past 12 years, and this can be attributed to the cumulative accumulation of reserves over years, they say.
“Going by the figures recorded at the end of every Water Year, which is in May, the depth to water level this year is the best in the past 12 years in Ranga Reddy district. More or less equivalent levels were recorded only in 2006,” informed K. Dhanunjaya, Deputy Director of the Groundwater Department.
The depth was 11.74 metres below ground level this May and 11.99 metres in 2006. All the remaining years recorded over 13.5 metres below ground level, he said.
