Pomegranate farmer Pandurang Mali shows his drying plantation in Tulshi village
For outsiders, the poster is funny, but it reflects how govt has been fooling us for 25 years. The scheme became operational in 2000. Several villages in Madha, including Tulshi, have received no rainfall in the last 45 days, according to the district record. A senior irrigation official from Krishna Valley Development Corporation said a technical analysis of Tulshi, Bavi, Paritewadi and Anjangaon Khurd was conducted in 2023. Of the 14 water bodies across the four villages, six can be filled through closed pipelines, while the remaining eight would require pumps. Mali, 47, once cultivated about 1,000 pomegranate trees on two acres. Last year, I earned Rs 6 lakh, but nothing this year.
Because nobody wants to give them their daughters, “Men are unmarried. Because of the water crisis, families reject proposals. You Can Also Check: Gold Rate in Pune | Silver Rate in Pune | Bank Holidays in Pune | Public Holidays in Pune | Petrol Price in Pune | Diesel Price in Pune | CNG Price in Pune | LPG Price in Pune Stay updated with the latest Pune news.
TULSHI/SOLAPUR: ‘Village for sale’, says the poster in Tulshi village in Solapur district. Sarpanch Sharad More said, “Anyone wanting to buy our village can step forward. Residents said they have been left out of the canal network that draws water from Ujani dam and supplies it to several neighbouring villages. Residents said its saucer-like terrain, surrounded by higher ground, makes it particularly difficult to hold water without a dedicated canal or a pipeline network. That is a reflection of our situation here,” More said. But villagers said these assurances remain unfulfilled despite politicians’ interventions. “This year, the situation is so grim that we are forced to protest,” villager Pramod Vasekar said. Solapur district collector S Karthikeyan said the irrigation department has conducted a hydrological survey of Tulshi and examined scientific and technical parameters. “The project cost was around Rs 46.49 crore then, which will escalate now,” he added. An emotional Pandurang Mali said, “It kills me every day to see my crop wither. I don’t know how I am going to live,” he said. We will be self-reliant,” Mali said. “We will have to buy fodder at high prices because of the shortage,” Vasekar said. Govt needs to understand all this,” Mali said. The villagers said that employment, household finances, livestock, migration, and the younger generation have also been affected. “And therefore, we feel we should sell our village,” More said.
The startling, bold words express anger, sarcasm and a deep disquiet among residents waiting for decades for irrigated water. Tulshi is a mere nine km from Sina-Madha lift irrigation scheme, but gets none of its benefits. Other villages cultivate water-intensive cash crops like sugar cane, vegetables and fruit plantations, including grapes and pomegranates, but Tulshi waits for uncertain rainfall. The village is the last settlement in Madha tehsil. The crisis is acute this year. Tulshi’s water bodies have little or no water, while wells and percolation lakes have dried up. “We have been getting tankers since July. For generations of farmers, the Sina-Madha project has promised to transform agriculture. The grim situation led to an indefinite fast by villagers on Ganesh Chaturthi. They submitted a memorandum to the tehsildar warning of collective self-immolation if their water demand was not met. They also threatened to boycott elections. I can’t water them. I tried to hire tankers, but I can’t afford them now. His house stands on the now-abandoned plantation. “I poured my sweat and blood into this plantation. His plantation is barely 100m from one of the village’s water bodies. “If we get canal water, we don’t need any govt help. Farmers turned to dairy farming a few years ago. Almost every family owns cows or buffaloes, but they too are reeling under the water and fodder crisis. The village’s social fabric is also wearing thin. Download the TOI App.
The protest was called off on Friday after water resources minister Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil spoke to them.
Nearly 2,700 hectares of agricultural land may turn barren once the monsoon retreats.
“Based on their findings, we will send a proposal to the state govt for a canal network to Tulshi and three other villages,” he told TOI. “After govt’s approval, work on the ground will take some years. These villages require the pipeline. Otherwise, their struggle for water is not going to end for years,” the irrigation official added. For Tulshi’s farmers, the crisis is visible in their fields. Farmers have abandoned fruit plantations and stopped planning fresh cultivation.