After taking the lead to build about 50 ‘kattas’ (small bunds) across the Phalguni and its tributaries in about a 25-km radius of Venoor town during the late 2019 and early 2020 to store water for summer, P. Dharanendra Kumar, a former Dakshina Kannada Zilla Panchayat member, and Vice-President is geared up again to reconstruct them.
Mr. Kumar told The Hindu that those ‘kattas’ could not be built during 2021 and 2022 due to COVID-19 restrictions.
College students, especially NSS volunteers, and villagers had joined hands with Mr. Kumar to construct those ‘kattas’ which also recharged ground water.
A file photo of a katta built by students of Alva’s College, Moodbidri at Virabe, Kutluru village under Belthangady Taluk of Dakshina Kannada.
The ‘kattas’ were built between December 2019 and February 2020 in the jurisdiction of eight gram panchayats on the foot of the Western Ghats in Belthangady taluk. They came up in large numbers in a typical geographical area for the first time in Dakshina Kannada, thanks to the students of Alva’s College, Dhavala College and S.N. Polytechnic in Moodbidri; St. Aloysius College in Mangaluru; Government First Grade Colleges in Vamadapadav, Punjalkatte and Belthangady and the people of the villages under the panchayats.
The community under the leadership of Mr. Kumar, a former member from Naravi zilla panchayat constituency, used sand bags and soil to build them without using any grant from the government. The cost of construction, including the supply of material, food and transportation, was borne by donors, including Mr. Kumar. The ‘shramdan’ saved labour charges.
Of about 50 bunds built, 14 were under Marodi Gram Panchayat, seven in Naravi panchayat, eight under Kashipatna panchayat, five in Andinje panchayat, two each under Sulkeri and Arambodi gram panchayats, five in Hosangady panchayat and six under Venoor Gram Panchayat.
Looming water scarcity
“With water scarcity looming large year after year and underground water table depleting fast, more ‘kattas’ should be built in the entire Dakshina Kannada and Udupi districts especially to overcome Summer. Not only farmers, but animals, and birds also need water. Students, voluntary organisations, and people in general should join hand,” Mr. Kumar said.
He said he has begun approaching colleges and the zilla panchayat authorities apprising them of the urgency to build ‘kattas’ all over the district and not only in Venoor and Naravi areas.
Depleting water table
Meanwhile, statistics of the Groundwater Directorate and Karnataka Groundwater Authority reveal that the underground water table both in Dakshina Kannada and Udupi districts has been on the decline for the past decade from 2013 to 2022. According to it, Mangaluru and Moodbidri taluks are the worst hit in Dakshina Kannada and Udupi taluk is also affected.
With rain playing truant, the government declared Mangaluru and Bantwal taluks in Dakshina Kannada and the entire Udupi as ‘drought-hit’ for the first time in the recent past in 2016-17. The government declared the entire Dakshina Kannada ‘partially drought-hit’ in January 2019. It declared Mangaluru and Moodbidri taluks in Dakshina Kannada and Brahmavar taluk in Udupi district as ‘moderately drought-hit’ in 2023.
Deficiency in rainfall
According to Karnataka State Natural Disaster Monitoring Centre (KSNDMC), there was — (minus) 19 % departure and – (minus) 23 % departure in rainfall in Dakshina Kannada and Udupi districts, respectively, from January 1 to December 1, 2023.
Dakshina Kannada recorded 3,247 mm rainfall against the normal 3,991 mm rainfall during the period. Udupi district reported 3,502 mm rainfall against the normal 4,519 mm rainfall. Uttara Kannada district recorded 2,408 mm rainfall against the normal 2,929 mm rainfall which was – (minus) 18% departure.
Entire coastal belt recorded – (minus) 19 % departure in rainfall during the same period.
N.J. Devaraja Reddy, well known hydrogeolost and rainwater harvesting adviser told The Hindu that drilling borewells during a crisis is not the solution as it would cause more damage to the underground water storage, especially in the coastal belt. Instead building more ‘kattas’, adopting different methods of harvesting rain water and recharging wells are the solutions.
