Delta farmers losing hope of cultivation during kharif

The worst nightmares of the Krishna Delta farmers seem to be coming true with the passing of each day. If the percentage of plantation is any indication, most farmers seem to have given up hope of cultivation during this kharif.

Unless there is heavy downpour in the Western Ghats, the two major reservoirs of River Krishna located in Karnataka – Alamatti and Tungabhadra – are unlikely to get filled. Water seems to trickling into these reservoirs which are less then 50 per cent full.

According to records, Alamatti is holding 83 tmcft on Tuesday compared to 106 tmcft on the corresponding date last year. Similarly Tungabhadra reservoir is holding 45 tmcft on Tuesday compared to the 99 tmcft on the correspondent date last year.

The Telangana Government is closely monitoring the release of water from Nagarjuna Sagar Project (NSP) insisting that water be released only for drinking water purposes. A little rainfall in the catchment of Krishna River below NSP would help in filling of drinking water tanks and provide some water for raising of seed beds. The discharge from the tributaries, Muniyeru, Wyra and Katleru has subsequently dropped.

The Krishna River Management Board came to the rescue of the people and farmers of Krishna Delta by ordering the release of 4,000 cusecs from Monday only to fill drinking water tanks. It has also permitted the release of water to the Alimenati Madhava Reddy Project (AMRP). Beginning with 300 cusecs on Monday the releases to the project were increased to 900 cusecs on Tuesday.

About 140 tmcft of water is required for filling of the major reservoirs – Alamatti and Tungabhandra – of Karnataka.

The chances of this happening in this monsoon seasons seem remote considering the meagre rainfall.

Meanwhile, the Krishna Delta Protection Committee (Parirakshana Samithi) has declared that it would ask farmers to agitate if water was not released for irrigation from the dead storage of NSP.

Committee chairman Kolanukonda Sivaji said that farmers would be mobilised to agitate on Prakasam Barrage laying siege to it demanding release of water from NSP. He asked why Minister for Major Irrigation Devineni Umamaheswara Rao was not convening the Krishna district Irrigation Advisory Board (IAB) till now.

The meeting should have been conducted at least a month ago. The attitude of the government to farmers continued to be as “negligent as ever.”