Andhra Pradesh - Anantapur   

Government urged to lift Tungabhadra river water

ANANTAPUR: ‘Sreeramakrishnaiah Smaraka Seva Samithi’ and Handri-Neeva Jala Sadhana Samithi have demanded the State Government to lift Tungabhadra river water to address the irrigation and drinking water problems of drought-prone Anantapur district forever.

Lifting of the river water was the only way to get 50 TMC ft of water allocated to the district for different needs and the modernisation of Tungabhadra Right High Level Canal (HLC) would in no way meet the district needs, leaders of the HNJSS M.V. Ramana and S. Narayana said here on Tuesday. The district was supposed to get 32 tmcft for irrigation under HLC, 10 tmcft for PABR from diversion of KC Canal quota and another 7 tmcft for drinking water need every year from Tungabhadra dam at Hospet in Karnataka. However, continuous piling up of silt on the reservoir bed had been reducing its water holding capacity every year and the proportionate reduction in the allocation to the district. As a result, the district had been getting an average of 22 to 25 tmcft of water every year for all needs, neither meeting the irrigation needs nor the drinking water problem fully, they said. The modernisation of HLC proposed by the government with Rs. 463 crore from 105th km of the canal would also not benefit the district in any way. Even if it was done from the canal head at the reservoir it was difficult to get the 50 TMC ft allocated water, the explained. On the other hand, the district was likely to get about 18 tmcft water from Handri-Neeva project when it was operationalised with full capacity. A minister from the district, N. Raghuveera Reddy had himself admitted that the district was at the bottom of the table of beneficiaries of Jalayagnam. The existing problem of scarcity of water in HLC could also pose threat to Sreerama Reddy drinking water scheme, they felt.

The reasoning cited by the irrigation department in setting aside a proposal sent by the samithi for lifting of 50 tmcft Tungabhadra water to Anantapur district from near Adoni in Kurnool district had no ground, as the modernisation of HLC would not help the silt problem of Tungabhadra reservoir overcome, the samithi leaders said.

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