The State government in the name of turning Anantapur district into horticulture hub, encouraged cultivation of horticulture crops in 1.86 lakh hectares, but has failed to ensure timely supply of water for irrigation through canals and things have come to such a pass that crop in thousands of acres was getting withered, said CPI(M) district secretary V. Rambhupal while launching indefinite fast at Mukundapuram on Monday.
Criticising the district administration for lack of planning in proper distribution of water, he said the Rythu Sangham leaders and the CPI(M) leaders would continue the fast till the District Collector comes to the village and released water/subsidy amount to get water through tankers for all farmers. He also demanded appropriate compensation to all the farmers who had lost their crop and plants that were 5-years-old or even older. “An entire generation will be affected by this as it takes six years for the new plants to be sown and start yielding,” he said.
Rythu Sangham leader Tarimella Nagaraju said that more than one lakh plants of sweet lime had withered in this village resulting in heavy loss to the farmers. The farmers in this village used to earn about ₹70 crore a year from various horticulture crops, but the government has dealt a severe blow to the farming community by not responding on time.
The canal modernisation work started about 12 years ago spending ₹396 crore has not yet been completed for the HLC water to reach the village and even the HNSS water cannot be brought. The groundwater level had gone below 27 metres at Mukundapuram and hundreds of borewells had turned defunct, he observed.
