Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil at Sangli’s canal advisory meet on Thursday
Additionally, a proposal to reserve 20 TMC of water from Koyna river—originally meant for power generation—for irrigation and drinking water purposes was discussed.
Appearing online at the meeting, Desai said misunderstandings were being spread about him across digital platforms. Taking cognisance of the outrage, the minister ordered officials not to let anyone intervene to stop the river water from flowing. The representatives from Sangli held Satara’s guardian minister, Shambhuraj Desai, responsible for obstructing the flow of Krishna river within Satara district by refusing to let the barrages be opened.
Earlier, speaking in Satara, Desai had stated that as the guardian minister of Satara, it was his right, granted by the state cabinet, to implement the cabinet decision to reserve water stock for drinking purposes. Kolhapur : State water resources department minister Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil and department officials faced the anger of public representatives and leaders from Sangli district at Krishna river basin’s canal advisory committee meeting on Thursday after a stretch of the river flowing through the district dried up for the first time in decades.
The minister informed the representatives that it has been decided to reserve dam water strictly for drinking until Aug 2027. The reserved water stock will equal the total volume required plus an additional 10%, while the remainder will be utilised for irrigation, primarily targeting the Rabi season starting next month. From Nov 15 onwards, water rotation for the rabi season will be initiated, moving up from the earlier proposed Dec 15 timeline. “Given the dam evaporation rate of 6% to 7%, only one water rotation for rabi crops will be possible, alongside two for drinking water, to ensure the water stock is stretched until Aug 2027. Since there is a severe shortage of water, a request has been made to divert 20 TMC of water from the power generation reserve for irrigation.
I will make a final decision after holding a meeting with chief minister Devendra Fadnavis ,” minister Vikhe Patil said.