Karnataka: Tungabhadra Storage Nears 60 TMC, Farmers Press For Irrigation Water
The improvement in storage has brought relief to farmers who had been anxiously watching the monsoon, particularly after a delayed start to the rainy season: Reports
BALLARI: Steady rainfall in the Western Ghats and the catchment of the Tunga and Bhadra rivers, has sharply improved inflows into the Tungabhadra reservoir, bringing relief to farmers dependent on the river basin in Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. With the reservoir now storing nearly 60 tmc ft of water, farmers in Ballari have decided to meet District In-charge Minister B Nagendra and press for an early decision on releasing water for irrigation.
Water from the Tungabhadra reservoir is a lifeline for farmers in parts of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, besides the Karnataka districts of Ballari, Vijayanagara, Raichur and Koppal.
The Tungabhadra reservoir continued to receive heavy inflows on Wednesday, with the water level touching 1,619.42 ft against its full reservoir level of 1,633 ft. The reservoir's storage increased by 8.573 tmc ft in the last 24 hours, rising from 51.145 tmc ft on Tuesday to 59.718 tmc ft on Wednesday. During the same period, it recorded an average inflow of 1,00,750 cusecs, while the live inflow stood at 85,823 cusecs.
The improvement in storage has brought relief to farmers who had been anxiously watching the monsoon, particularly after a delayed start to the rainy season. As the dam had little water, the government had decided to provide it only for drinking purpose.
"The reservoir now holds 59.718 tmc ft of water, which is a healthy storage. The government should now begin the process of releasing water for irrigation. That will provide much-needed relief to farmers," Rajya Raitha Sangha–Hasiru Sene president Madhava Reddy told Deccan Chronicle.
Recalling the 2019 monsoon, Reddy said the situation had been similar that year as well, with poor rainfall during the initial weeks. The reservoir had crossed the 65 tmc ft mark only in August after which irrigation releases were taken up.
Reddy said farmers would meet District In-charge Minister B Nagendra, who is scheduled to visit Ballari on Wednesday following his induction into the State Cabinet, and urge him to convene the Irrigation Consultative Committee (ICC) meeting at the earliest. (The ICC decides on when and how much reservoir water should be released into canals for agricultural crops.)
"We will request the minister to ensure that the ICC meeting is held without delay so that a decision on releasing irrigation water can be taken. If water is released in time, farmers can take up paddy and chilli cultivation now. Around four lakh acres each are under paddy and chilli cultivation in Ballari district," he said.
