The Hindu : Andhra Pradesh News : Will lift irrigation scheme on Godavari be feasible?

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Tuesday, Aug 03, 2004

Andhra Pradesh

Andhra Pradesh

Will lift irrigation scheme on Godavari be feasible?

The Austrians were in Hyderabad in mid-June. Not for sightseeing, but for serious business. They expressed the desire to fund the Godavari Lift Irrigation Scheme (GLIS) by providing $ 477 million. Why are the Austrians pushing the GLI Scheme, over which even the World Bank has serious reservations, in terms of its usefulness to the farmers of Telangana?

Austria has a long tradition in the construction and use of hydropower. The domestic industry in that country has chosen to go international and draw upon their strengths in this sector and know-how. In addition, since the Austrian market is too small and they need to export, the Government has been backing this proposal. The Austrians have already invested a lot of time and probably resources in lobbying with the previous Andhra Pradesh Government. The former irrigation Minister, Kadiam Srihari, was in Vienna in November and the Minister and his team were impressed with Austrian technology and their rubber dams. The Austrians were waiting for the election results to clinch the deal.

Question of feasibility

However, the key question is the feasibility of the GLIS itself. Would it, indeed, address the needs and aspirations of the farmers of Telangana? For the last one year, the Godavari Vedika, an umbrella of NGOs, concerned citizens for Telangana and independent experts, have been analysing the technical information obtained from the Government. Several meetings were held to discuss the issue and many articles on the same have since appeared in newspapers.

The WWF and Godavari Vedika decided to confirm the Austrian interest in funding the GLIS in Vienna with the OeKB. The sheer magnitude of the GLIS is problematic. It aims at lifting 1,400 million cubic metres of water for 120 days during the monsoon season from the Godavari to irrigate 200,000 hectares in three districts - Warangal, Karimnagar, Medak and part of Nalgonda (39 mandals). It will provide drinking water to about 1 million people en route. Water will be lifted at 450 metres RL and transported for nearly 200 km using the existing village tanks as online reservoirs.

Doubtful purpose

Power to lift the water is supposed to be supplied by two power plants constructed downstream using the Godavari flow, without any dams. Even if we believe that totally avoiding the reserve forests for any construction on the river is possible, the purpose of this scheme is doubtful apart from escaped costs. Some of the conclusions by the Godavari Vedika are: a) electricity costs will be too high, exceeding Rs.7,000 per acre; b) the projected change in cropping patterns to grow commercial crops is unrealistic--farmers are expected to make a profit of Rs.120,000 per acre by growing tomatoes; c) from pumping to reach the final destination the scheme is supposed to use six existing water tanks.

It is not clear what would happen to the existing water rights, and how they will prevent pollution of drinking water; d) it may be difficult to avoid some ecological damage; and e) the rate of return for this project is going to be much less -- the project may give less then Rs.60 after spending Rs.100.

Additional burden for farmers

At a dialogue with experts of the OeKB on GLIS on July 7 in Vienna, a detailed presentation on technical, social and ecological issues of the GLIS was made. The point, however, is that even before basic procedures such as discussions and deliberations were completed, the Austrian Ambassador reportedly gave the final nod to the loan. And even if they do make a formal application (to the bank) now, it will take some months for the bank to examine the project. When there is not even an application with the OeKB and the process has not even begun in Vienna, why do the Austrians visiting Hyderabad give an impression that they are funding this project?

It is true that many irrigation projects earlier might not have been designed to give back profits. But in the case of GLIS, the farmers may have to pay the cost of electricity, which might even exceed the entire production of their crops in some cases. At least that singular point shows the kind of added burden on farmers.

No experience

Andhra Pradesh does not have a good record of maintaining lift irrigation schemes of much smaller magnitude--lifting water less than 50 metres and transporting it to a few kilometres. Most of them collapsed and very few are actually functional. It is highly unlikely that GLIS is ever going to see completion due to such complexities.

It is time for a public debate on the feasibility of such a project ostensibly linked to poverty-alleviation. The farmers of Telangana need Godavari water to improve their lives. The Government must review the relevance of GLIS to Telangana before it is too late, and not add to the plight of the farmers in the region, already in debts.

By Dr. Biksham Gujja

(Policy Advisor at WWF International, Switzerland)

Printer friendly page
Send this article to Friends by E-Mail

Andhra Pradesh