Telangana Formation Day celebrations: Record 1 lakh farmers perform ‘deeparchana’ for Godavari waters

People of 126 villages in the seven mandals stood with traditional lamps along with the 350 km-long canal and performed pooja to Godavari water

Suryapet: As a part of the Irrigation Day celebrations in the district, over 1 lakh farmers including women performed a deeparchana with lamps in the ayacut of the SRSP canal to show their gratitude to the Godavari waters. The ritual was witnessed in several villages of seven mandals in the district.

People of 126 villages in the seven mandals, which falls under the ayacut of SRSP canal, stood with traditional lamps along with the 350 km-long canal and performed pooja to Godavari waters, which reach them from the Kaleshwaram project. They also showered flower petals on Godavari waters at the same time. The farmers also raised slogans like ‘Jai KCR’. The fete has found a place in the Wonder Book of Records with its representatives recording that 1,16,435 people participated in the ‘deeparchana’.

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Participating in the rare fete at 71 DBM of SRSP canal at Chivvemla, Energy Minister G Jagadish Reddy said the people of Suryapet district struggled for drinking water and irrigation facility in the erstwhile Andhra Pradesh before 2014. A foundation stone was laid for the SRSP canal in 1991, but no water flowed into in it till 2014 due to the works remaining incomplete. The SRSP canal was one of the best examples for the injustice done to Telangana in irrigation in the erstwhile Andhra Pradesh, he said.