Kadem dam water row: Farmers stage protests in Mancherial, Nirmal districts

Farmers in Thapalapur, Mancherial district, staged a road sit-in demanding irrigation water from Kadem dam. They said paddy crops had reached the booting stage and needed another watering, warning of losses if the crops withered. Similar protests were reported elsewhere.

Mancherial: Protests demanding water from Kadem dam continue to occur in different parts of Nirmal and Mancherial districts. In the latest instance, farmers staged a sit-in on a road at Thapalapur village in Jannaram mandal, demanding water from the dam on Monday.

The agitating farmers said that their paddy crop reached the booting stage and required watering for once. They regretted that they would register losses if the crop withers at this stage. They urged the Irrigation officials to release water for agriculture needs till November 30.

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Recently, Irrigation officials declared that the water would be reserved for future drinking water needs. They said that water would not be supplied to agriculture fields from November 7. However, their decision has drawn sharp criticism from the agrarian community and triggered protests by farmers as well.

On November 5, farmers from both Rampur and Thimmapur blocked traffic seeking water to irrigate crops at the tail-end of the dam. Chintaguda farmers too staged a similar protest seeking water supply from Kadem dam for tail-end agriculture fields. They expressed concern over saving crops from getting withered at the booting stage.