Handri Neeva Sujala Sravanti water to fill 300 irrigation tanks

Anantapur: Handri Neeva Sujala Sravanti (HNSS) Project originally aimed at irrigating 6.02 lakh acres in Rayalaseema and 3.45 lakh acres alone in Anantapur district is also instrumental in filling nearly 300 minor irrigation tanks in the district. The filling of minor irrigation tanks would contribute to recharging of groundwater, supply of drinking water and irrigate the local ayacut areas.

Through the Madakasira Branch Canal alone water was supplied to 150 village tanks and water is released to 60 tanks through Jeedipalle Reservoir. Through the PABR Right Canal, water to about 50 irrigation tanks are being ensured.

The supply of Krishna water through the HNSS canals to Jeedipalle, Gollapalle, Cherlpalle and Marala reservoirs in Anantapur district and in turn to Dharmavaram, Guntakal, Madakasira and Punganur branch canals and in turn to village tanks is the crux of the HNSS irrigation story.

The project first phase was designed to extend irrigation facility to 1.18 lakh acres and supply drinking water to more than 4 lakh population in the district. Under the project second phase, it was designed to irrigate 2.27 lakh acres and drinking water to 16 lakh population. 

The HNSS Project was formulated to cater to even other districts of Rayalaseema including Chittoor, Kurnool and Kadapa districts. District Collector Veera Pandian told The Hans India that the HNSS Project is destined to change the face of Rayalaseema as well as Anantapur district.

Agriculture and industrialisation would experience a boom addressing unemployment issues. The Kia Motors project is an indication of things to come.The project besides irrigating 6 lakh odd acres in the region is designed to supply drinking water to about 33 lakh people enroute the 565-km long canal system.

HNSS Superintendent Engineer Rama Krishna Reddy told The Hans India that the government is thinking to supply irrigation water through drip and sprinklers as a long-term measure. The reservoirs built to facilitate HNSS water include Krishnagiri and Pathikonda reservoirs in Kurnool district and Jeedipalle Reservoir in Anantapur district with total storage capacity of 2.973 tmcft of water.

In the second phase, Gollapalle, Cherlpalle and Marala reservoirs in Anantapur district, Srinivasapuram Reservoir in Kadapa district and Adivipalle Reservoir in Chittoor district with a total storage capacity of 6.102 tmcft. Under the ayacut proposals, the project will irrigate 80,000 acres in Kurnool, 3.45 lakh acres in Anantapur, 37,500 acres in Kadapa and 1.4 lakh acres in Chittoor district. Madakasira and Punganur branch canals will provide irrigation to 2.27 lakh acres, drinking water to 16 lakh population covering 257 villages in Anantapur district. 

The HNSS canal links the Handri, Penna, Chirtravathi, Papagni, Mandavya, Bahuda, Cheyyeru, Gargeya, Vedavati, and Palar rivers and many other rivers in the Rayalaseema region. The canals are spread across Kurnool, Anantapur, Kadapa and Chittoor districts. 

Three balancing reservoirs are constructed in the Phase-I including Krishnagiri Reservoir (Kurnool district), Pathikonda Reservoir (Kurnool district) and Jeedipalli Reservoir (Anantapur district). The second phase (349 kilometres length) of the main canal up to Adivipalli Reservoir of Chittoor district.