Groundwater recedes to alarming levels in Palamur, Nagarkurnool district

​Mahbubnagar: With groundwater levels depleting as deep as 32 meters in some parts of Mahbubnagar, a large number of borewells have gone dry during the past one month. This has led to scarcity of drinking water across the entire erstwhile Mahbubnagar district. The people are forced to depend on water tankers to meet their water needs.

According to the officials of the Groundwater Department in Mahbubnagar district, almost 17 villages in Nagarkurnool and Mahbubnagar districts have witnessed alarming level of groundwater depletion. Groundwater receded to dangerous levels.

For instance, the groundwater level has receded to more than 32 meters in Rajapur mandal in Mahbubnagar district. Similarly, in Kalwakurthy mandal in Nagarkurnool district, the situation is alarming with the groundwater receding to more than 39 meters below the ground.

Overall there are nine villages in Mahbubnagar district and eight villages in Nagarkurnool district where the water levels have fallen as deep as 20 meters below the ground. This has become a big cause of concern for the people of these two districts. The people are forced to depend on private water tankers for both drinking and daily use.

According to Mudavath Shankuntala, a resident of Vijayagar colony of Jadcherla Mandal, with both the borewells in their house going dry a month ago, the family us forced to depend on private tankers who are extort money. “Both the borewells have gone dry and we are depending on private tankers. Taking advantage of this, the private water suppliers, who used to charge Rs 200 earlier, are now demanding Rs 450 per each tanker,” said Ms Shankuntala.

According to Ms Ramadevi, officials of the Groundwater Department, the situation of ground water levels a month ago was not that bad, but the demand for water has increased many folds during the past one month in April and the demand is going to continue further even in the month of May. Therefore, the official has suggested that the people adopt groundwater recharge methods like digging sink pits and other water recharging methods.

“We assess the entire erstwhile Mahbubnagar district, there are lot of variations found in groundwater levels. For instance, the groundwater levels in some areas of Rajapur and Midjil areas has gone very deep more than three meters and it is a matter of concern. Similarly, in the mandals of Kalwakurthy and Veldanda are under danger zones with more than 33 meters deep.

Therefore, people have to realise this and try to adopt the recharge methods and try to save the groundwater. Otherwise if the levels fall further, then it will become very difficult to fetch water from the ground in the near future,” observed the official.

However, the situation in Gadwal and Wanaparthy districts is not that bad. The average groundwater levels are in the available zone of 10-15 meters below the ground. Therefore, there is no immediate threat of water for these two districts. The main reason for abundant water levels in these areas is due to filling up of tanks and digging up of canals under the Mission kakatiya and due to release of irrigation water under Kalwakurty and Jurala lift irrigation projects.