Udupi Deputy Commissioner G. Jagadeesha on Thursday said that the district administration has planned revamping of the underground drainage system in Udupi city at a cost of ₹400 crore. Revamping the system, Mr. Jagadeesha said, would help contain water pollution in the Indrani rivulet passing through the city.
The Deputy Commissioner was speaking at the “Monthly Media Interaction” organised by Udupi District Working Journalists Association along with Udupi Press Club in Udupi.
Mr. Jagadeesha said that the administration was concerned about the pollution of the rivulet and has decided to focus on plugging sewage flow into the Indrani. A proposal to revamp the obsolete underground drainage system was already sent to the government, he said. When approved, the existing system that has faulty design would be fully changed.
Responding to a query on the deplorable condition of the Indrani, Mr. Jagadeesha said that the routine exercise of removing silt from the rivulet bed was being taken up every year before the onset of monsoon. It would be done this year too. While removing silt from the rivulet bed thereby facilitating unhindered flow of rainwater was one of the solutions, restoring the underground drainge system was another major solution. When the administration was planning to elevate Udupi and Manipal into Smart Cities, the rivulet passing through the city cannot be left to remain polluted, he said.
There was also a need to rejuvenate fallow agricultural land in the district to make them fit for cultivation to enhance water holding capacity of the land. The administration has planned to increase paddy cultivation by one thousand hectares a year taking lead from neighbouring Kerala where 25,000 hectares of fallow land was being rejuvenated under the Subhiksha Keralam scheme, he said.
The administration would approach land owners, motivate them and provide incentives to take up farming on fallow land to make the district self-reliant in foodgrains production. The administration would also reserve 10 acres of land in every taluk to promote food processing industries, Mr. Jagadeesha added.
