Govt mulls alternative plans to save crops under Godavari ayacut

Hyderabad: Most of the area under Godavari ayacut will be irrigated without any supply of water from the Kaleshwaram project during current Rabi (Yasangi) as well as forthcoming Kharif (Vanalakam) farming season in the state.

This decision has been taken in the wake of threat to the safety of the Medigadda barrage after the piers had sunk recently and it had become a major political issue. The state government has also decided to order a thorough probe into the alleged irregularities in the project work.

The Irrigation department is now making arrangements to supply water from SRSP (Sriram Sagar Project) to Godavari ayacut in the coming farming season as it used to be done in the past before the Kaleshwaram project was constructed.

Top officials said the Irrigation department was reviewing the water availability on a daily basis in the SRSP from where the government can release flood water to Mid Manair and upper Manair dams. Water will be released for irrigation needs under the Godavari ayacut which covers old Nizamabad, Karimnagar and Warangal districts. Sources said It would take at least one year to address the Medigadda crisis.

Hence, the government does not want to depend on Kaleshwaram for irrigation needs lest it may lead to a greater disaster.

Officials said as the functioning of the threshold point of the Kaleshwaram project-Medigadda was stopped due to the damage of the piers, supplying water for irrigation has become a big challenge for the government. The only option before the government is to avail irrigation water from the SRSP. Till recently, the Medigadda barrage was one of the main sources to store Pranahita water and release it to Sripada Rao Yellampalli project from where it was lifted to the reservoirs mainly Mallanna Sagar, Kondapochamma Sagar, etc.

Though the previous government had claimed that the Kaleshwaram project provided irrigation water for around 20 lakh acres, the official statistics claimed that only one lakh acres of ayacut was created under the multi-crore project.

Officials said the government will have to prepare alternative plans for the supply of water for irrigation and ensure that no scarcity of water during the farming season.

If the state received bountiful of rains this monsoon, the SRSP flood flow canal will provide abundant water resources to fill Yellampalli, Upper and Mid Manair and other projects and the available water can be released during the Kharif season.

The water that is now available in the projects would be released for Rabi crops in the next two months. The department was consulting the Indian Meteorological wing to ascertain the possibility of rainfall during the next monsoon season so that it can accordingly prepare an action plan for irrigation.

If the state receives deficit rainfall, the government will come up with an alternative agriculture action plan to overcome the water crisis. A majority of farmers cultivate paddy under the Godavari ayacut which requires huge water resources, officials said. Now they are in the process of preparing advance plans.