The crisis for Rabi farmers in Telangana deepens because crops go away due to lack of irrigation support.
Hyderabad: The plight of Rabi (Yasangi) farmers in Telangana is becoming increasingly serious as they reach the middle of their crop season. While a major section of the crop requires irrigation support for at least two and months, some areas require additional fortnight. But uncertainty becomes bigger on the fate of crops.
Many farmers have been left high and dry with severe water shortage for irrigation, reaching the verge of suicide. Protests have been held in the canal system. Farmers are stimulated due to lack of positive response from irrigation authorities.
In Chinnasitranthanda in Suryetta district, farmers staged a protest on their knees, with irrigation minister N Uttam Kumar Reddy in repeated arguments, without any benefit. Disappointment among farmers is clear. A young farmer attempted suicide in Kudkuda village in Suryetta district. Vamulakonda Lakshyaiah, a close relative of the Congress leader, consumed pesticides in his withered crop, expressing pain over the lack of timely water supply from the SRSP canal, which he blamed on the failure of the current Congress government.
As the lack of water deteriorates, the protest intensifies. More and more farmers lose hope in their rabi crops, leaving their standing crops for grazing cattle. It has become a common view from Durbakal in Mahabubabad district to Kodad in Suryet district, throughout Ayacut of SRSP Stage II. The fate of the rabi crop now rests on the capacity of the irrigation department to ensure water supply in the next two weeks. Failure to do so may be unable to fix half of their crop investments for about half of Rabi farmers. Unlike the previous BRS regime, either the crop investment is not supported to reduce these disadvantages.
Groundwater shortage
By adding to the crisis, the groundwater table is decreasing rapidly. New borewells are not giving any water. It was also the situation in SRSP Phase I Ayacut. In Darpalli division, a farmer who spent about Rs 3 lakh on his standing crops on four acres, is now ready to give up his crops for grazing cattle. After spending another 3 lakh rupees on a new bore that failed to produce water, now he faces additional cost to close it permanently. Many farmers are facing similar difficulties.
The situation in the SRSP Stage II command area is equally frightening, which covers 4.43 lakh acres of land in Vidhanpet, Palakurthy, Dornakal, Maripada, Paleer, Thungthurthi, Suryet, Kodad and Huzurnagar. According to the irrigation scheme for the Rabi crop season, five lakh acres of Ayakut were targeted in the erstwhile Warangal, Khammam and Nalgonda districts. However, at least 40 percent of the required irrigation support of the region was not received.
Poor management of precious water resources, especially Kaleshwaram lift irrigation scheme Medigada, Annaram and Sundila Barrage are convicted for the water crisis enhancing failure to use Pranahita water and its devastating effect on the Rabi farmers. It is now realized by the farmer community that only Kaleshwaram Mega Pump could only be taken out of the desperation as complement of supply from SRSP.
