Kolhapur : Raju Pujari, a 40-year-old farmer from Khatnal village in Sangli’s Jat tehsil, had sown tur and bajra across the 15-acre land he tills with his brothers. He had high hopes for a good return; however, the deficient rainfall in Aug dashed those hopes.
In August, circles such as Jat and Muchundi—along with Madgyal, which is famous for its Madgyal sheep—received just 50% of the normal monthly rainfall of 292 mm. We are depending on water tankers to keep our 10 buffaloes alive. In 2021, sixty-odd villages bordering Karnataka passed resolutions to join the neighbouring state, alleging that Maharashtra had failed to fulfill their water demands for decades. launched in 1985, helped quench the thirst of some villages in the tehsil, the canals did not reach these 60 border villages While the Mhaisal lift irrigation scheme. Prior to that, in 2021, the govt had approved the use of 7 TMC of water from the Warana dam to be released into the Krishna river for these villages. Sunil Potdar, convener of the Pani Sangharsh Samiti for the 60 villages, said, “There are five to six villages that are now 100% dependent on water tankers. To prevent the situation from worsening, the govt must repair dried-up borewells and construct water-harvesting structures. ” In response to the crisis, the district administration recently banned lifting of water from 26 minor irrigation projects in Jat tehsil until further notice.
You Can Also Check: Gold Rate in Kolhapur | Silver Rate in Kolhapur | Bank Holidays in Kolhapur | Public Holidays in Kolhapur Stay updated with the latest Kolhapur news.
We may be forced to migrate to areas with better water availability if the scarcity worsens,” said Pujari, noting that he has never witnessed such a dire situation in Sept. The govt must appoint a dedicated team led by an efficient official to speed up the work. ” Farmer activist Vikram Dhone said cattle camps are immediately required in the Umadi, Sankh, and Utagi areas. The crops are bound to fail, no matter how hard he tries to save them. “The crops have almost died. There has been no rain for a month, and nearby reservoirs have dried up. Green fodder is depleting rapidly, and there is an urgent need to start cattle camps to save the livestock. Jat is a notoriously drought-prone tehsil in the Sangli district. Following the threat of secession, the Maharashtra govt swung into action and decided to extend the lift irrigation scheme. The work is currently underway, and officials have promised it will be completed by Oct next year. There is no water left in small reservoirs even to fill the tankers. People are living in the hope that they will one day receive water lifted from the Krishna river for drinking and irrigation. However, the expansion of the Mhaisal scheme is moving very slowly. Chandrashekhar Gobbi, a prominent resident of the border village Tikondi, added, “Around Diwali and Dasara, in late Oct or Nov, rains usually arrive and help refill the dried-up lakes. This water helps sustain us for a few months. These minor dams include Kosari, Tippehalli, Walekhindi, Siddhnath, Revnal, Birnal, Shegaon, Tikondi, Jalihal, Yelabi, Soradi, Pratapur, Sanmadi, Buivarhi, Darbidchi, Ankalagi, Daflapur, Umrani, Belunkhi, Bilur, and Doddanala, among others. Download the TOI App.