Bore-less Boregaon that stands apart

Nirmal: At a time, farm wells are passé and drilled wells are order of the day both for agricultural and household chores, the residents of Boregaon, a tiny panchayat 240 km north of Hyderabad, in Nirmal district, stand apart from others by shunning borewells and banking on age-old traditional agricultural wells, yet reaping bountiful harvest twice a year.

But for the farmers who come under marginal and small landholdings category, almost all the cultivators in this village have a farm well each in their field. Those who don’t have a farm well depend on their neighbourhood source but won’t go for a borewell.

It might sound a little odd but there is some truth in the argument of residents, who on their own imposed a blanket ban on drill wells in their village limits.

However, the information the Sarpanch Koripelly Vimala shared with The Hans India gives an account of the conventional mode of farming methods they practice. “Digging of farm well may cost more than that of drilled well, but it will remain a permanent source of irrigation. There many an advantage with the farm wells. 

The farmer can keep a track of water source in his well round the year and take up cultivation accordingly.”One cannot assume that when a drilled well goes dry or falls short of water source, she added, explaining other hiccups associated with the borewell-managed farming.

While a maximum number of borewells in the neighbouring villages of Boregaon under Laxmanchanda mandal have already become defunct, our farm wells boast a plenty of water expected to last till next rainy season, Vimala said with a beaming smile.
Kolagani Naveen, who has a landholding of five acres, has come up with some interesting points. 

“One or more pumping motors can be installed at a farm well and we can draw waters from them simultaneously if there was a need. The maintenance of external motors is easy compared to submersible ones,” Naveen said.

More in radius the farm well will have oota (aquifer oozing), he said, pointing to the sufficient water they get even in summer.Incidentally, there is only one drill well in this village to source water to public overhead storage reservoir (OHSR).