Poor rainfall hits Rabi crop sowing in Nellore

Nellore: The irrigation department officials expressed their inability to supply water to farming operations for current Rabi season due to poor rainfall in the district.

Farmers particularly from delta areas, who are planning to cultivate paddy and other commercial crops in over 9 lakh acres from October month based on the availability of water in reservoirs such as Somasila, Kandaleru, Kanigiri Sangam Anecut in the district are disappointed a lot due to dead storage level in these dams. Due to non-availability of water in water bodies and rain fed tanks in the district the crops also withered.

Irrigation Department SE P Krishna Mohan appealed to farmers not to go for sowing until a decision taken up in Irrigation Advisory Board (IAB) meeting over supply of water for rabi season.

“We lost all hopes of cultivating crops in present rabi season because more than 25 tanks including Marupuru, Kanaparty major tanks which draw water from Kandaleru left canal are totally dried up,” said Pasupulate Kishore a farmer from Pidalakuru mandal.