File pic of canal
A senior engineer from the Nashik irrigation department said, “Cash crops like sugarcane, banana and cotton are being watered by drawing water from wells that are within the 35-meter zone along canals. “When water is released for irrigation purposes through canals, wells are recharged by water percolating through canal structures. Nashik: The water resources department has begun an exercise to identify farmers who use wells that are located in the vicinity of canals and irrigate cash crops without paying any charges for the water irrigation facility. WRD releases water through canals for agriculture based on farmers’ water demand, which is drawn for irrigation purposes and an irrigation charge is levied on the farmers for water. This is unauthorised use and the department is identifying such farmers to charge them for irrigation facilities. Generally, orchards are taken up by farmers where there is no constant water flow, and since these farmers are looking for a water source, they tap farmers who have agricultural land along canals. Farmers along water bodies sell off a small portion of their land to farmers with orchards to dig wells. The orchard owners then install water pumps and take the water to a far-off distance–even up to four km from the canal. This water is then pumped up for orchards far away. They pay no fee for this use, which is half the charge for flow irrigation. To locate such users, WRD has decided to launch a massive hunt for such farmers,” the officer added.
The officer added that the exercise will not only help in realising lost revenue but will also help identify the exact areas being cultivated through the respective irrigation projects. You Can Also Check: Gold Rate in Nashik | Silver Rate in Nashik | Bank Holidays in Nashik | Public Holidays in Nashik | Petrol Price in Nashik | Diesel Price in Nashik | CNG Price in Nashik | LPG Price in Nashik Stay updated with the latest Nashik news.
“This way, we will be able to locate the well owners and their related farms based on which user charges will be levied,” the officer said. “This exercise will help us in truing up irrigated land across the state,” the officer added. WRD has ordered its personnel to identify the wells in the zones and establish their ownership. With the help of the revenue and land records department, the names of small plot owners will be identified, and their registrations will be checked for wells. Download the TOI App.