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Irrigation Is Life of Bangaru Telangana
Highlights
Irrigation Irrigation contributes immensely to the Agriculture sector and thereby to the Socio-Economic development of the State. Irrigation in...
Irrigation
Irrigation contributes immensely to the Agriculture sector and thereby to the Socio-Economic development of the State. Irrigation in Telangana is mostly dependent on the utilization of water from Godavari and Krishna rivers and tributaries, tanks and ponds. There are about 46,000 water conservation structures varying from very large tanks to small ponds including percolation tanks. These water conservation structures together are the leading source for meeting irrigation, commercial and other domestic needs.
The State Government realises the importance of irrigation and is striving hard to harness the water of both the rivers for development of the State in a sustainable way. Towards this endeavour, efforts are afoot to expedite the ongoing and proposed major and medium irrigation projects. This will allow rightful utilization of total allocation of water to Telangana. The planned utilization in Godavari & Krishna River is 933.70 TMC and 298 TMC respectively including floodwaters in Krishna Basin
Irrigation system under the Kakatiyas, who developed excellent irrigation technology harnessing every drop of rainwater, offers a very good model to revive sustainable drought-proofing measures. Apart from the four major tanks – Pakhal, Ramappa, Lakhnavaram and Ghanpur with a yield of 5,872 mcft covering an ayacut of 11,975 ha, there are 5,000 other lakes with a storage capacity of 100 mcft each. Repairs, renovation and restoration of minor irrigation tanks have stabilized an ayacut of 3,908 ha in the years 2012-13 and 2013-14.
Minor irrigation tanks being the lifeline of Telangana, the Government has accorded highest priority for renovation of chain tanks in Minor irrigation sector under the flagship programme ‘Mission Kakatiya’ in the next five years with funding from GOI, JICA, AIBP, World Bank and through normal State Plan. These activities would also contribute to stabilize the groundwater levels. Rainwater harvesting is another area of high importance to ensure that water yields of micro and minor irrigation structures would be kept at easily exportable levels.
Government has planned to complete the Major & Medium Irrigation Projects in a phased manner, so as to create Irrigation potential of 99.136 lakh acres
(Irrigation potential (lakh in acres) are 30.54,35.465,66.09,21.494 and 11.63) New Major Irrigation Scheme & Projects.
Telangana Government has an overall strategy to create facilities for irrigating one lakh acres in each constituency excluding urban areas in the coming 5 years. Thus the government has proposed to take up 2 Major projects & One Flood Flow Canal, benefiting the districts of Mahabubnagar, Ranga Reddy, Nalgonda and Warangal by irrigating 13.41 lakhs acres and check on floods in monsoon season.
Minor Irrigation
There are 35,974 tanks serving an ayacut of 18.75 lakh acres including 31,196 Panchayat Raj department tanks serving an ayacut of 6.68 lakh acres. The tank irrigation is concentrated mostly in the districts of Warangal, Khammam and Karimnagar. Under minor irrigation, an area of 37,300 acres of irrigation potential is created and 19,700 acres of irrigation potential is utilised with an expenditure of Rs.488.46 crores during the year 2013-14. The rehabilitation of Minor irrigation schemes sanctioned under World Bank assisted by Telangana Community Based Tank Management Project is in Progress. The scheme is intended to improve 1182 tanks and about 762 schemes are completed.
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Since 1990, well irrigation in the State has increased substantially while there is steady decline in tank irrigation, causing serious concern on source sustainability and energy demand for pumping groundwater. A comprehensive programme for restoration of tanks and revitalization of irrigation potential is critical for developing an integrated approach towards surface and groundwater management, and filling the prevailing 63% gap in realizing the potential of tank irrigation in the state benefiting about 11.5 lakh farmers in the nine drought prone districts of Telangana state.
Tank irrigation has huge bearing on generation of rural employment, poverty reduction and agricultural growth. The sheer size of command area under tank irrigation makes it a large centre of agricultural production and provides a critical opportunity for commercial agriculture through market linkages.
G.Rajendra Kumar
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