New curbs on water drawals hurt Telangana farmers more than scarcity
Authorities begin seizing pumpsets and motors used for drawing water from irrigation canals
Hyderabad: Farmers under the SRSP ayacut, as well as parts of the Nagarjuna Sagar Left Canal network, are facing severe water scarcity, and the new curbs put in place to regulate the supplies are hurting them more.
Authorities have begun to seize the pumpsets and motors used for drawing of water from irrigation canals leading to an uproar among the farmers in different districts, as standing crops are bound to wither away due to non-availability of water.
The tail-end farmers, who either received no supply or only partial supply, are accustomed to drawing water using their motors from ponds and canals nearby. With the promised water supplies under the canal system failing to materialise, farmers have resorted to using their pumpsets to save their crops.
The Rabi paddy is currently in a crucial flowering stage, a time when it requires more water. Failing to provide the necessary wetting will result in considerable yield losses. The farmers have been struggling as water supplies from major and medium projects are dwindling, prompting them to use available sources. However, irrigation officials, during a recent State-level review on Rabi, have made this a serious issue. The authorities have reportedly sought the support of police and revenue departments to regulate water supply.
As part of the initiative, pumpsets and motors used by farmers to draw water from canals and distributaries are being removed. In some places, they have been seized, triggering an outcry among the farming community.
Farmers under the SRSP stage II ayacut in Mahabubnagar district have been questioning the new curbs. Farmers in Mannegudem and Rayigudem village pointed out that contractors involved in illegal sand quarrying in streams and drying up canals can get away with their practices. But farmers taking water from the same sources are not being spared.
The farmers argue that they are being penalised for using water from ponds and canals, which would dry up in a fortnight or a month anyway if left unutilised. Similar concerns have been raised by farmers under the SRSP stage II canal system in Suryapet district. Farmers are being warned of cases for what officials call “pilferage of water from the canals”. In the Ramayampet area of Yadadri Bhongir district, similar curbs have been in place for over a fortnight, with farmers drawing water from the Musi project canals.
The conflict between farmers and irrigation officials is escalating due to the new curbs. Farmers continue to draw water to save their crops, putting all their resources at stake. Previously, with the Kaleshwaram lifts operating, there was no scarcity of water under the SRSP stage II. Even in cases of shortages in the tail-end ayacut, farmers had the liberty of drawing water from local sources by engaging pumps. Now the same is viewed as a crime today.
