Green cover only panacea

​Anantapur: ‘Operation Greening Mission’ was unveiled by the district administration had given a call to the farmers to plant trees on farm pond bunds and also on field bunds. The grandiose plan is for planting 6 crore trees in the district if every farmer did it with conviction then it would certainly have a great bearing on the climate of the district. Besides, more than 600 hills had been identified for increasing forest cover.

If the 27 lakh acres of farm land bunds and farm pond bunds are given a green cover, nearly 3 crore plants in the crop lands will cover the district like a canopy.

District Collector Kona Sasidhar told The Hans India that tree plantation is taken up on a mission mode like the farm ponds campaign which had been highly successful in the district. The mission is to change the adverse climate of the district. Observers in the district are of the view that planting and maintaining of 10 trees by each farmer in the district should be made mandatory by linking the receipt of government benefits to tree plantation. Bank loans, crop loans, pensions and all government benefits should be linked to each farmer planting 10 trees in his field.

Awareness should be created among the farmers that the green decree is for their good and for the future of the district and future generations.

The green mission would be the only panacea for changing the climate and conditions which downgraded it to the level of a drought and famine prone district The district with semi-arid conditions, falling under rain shadow zone and recording the second lowest rainfall in the country after Jaisalmer in Rajasthan is getting special treatment from Central and State governments and international agencies due to drought conditions ruling the roost for over 100 years.

Thousands of crores had been invested on the district to fight drought and famine conditions without actually adopting a scientific approach for combating drought conditions and tackling the ground realities. All along hundreds of crores had been pumped in just to provide artificial respiration in the form of providing input subsidies, crop insurance coverage and provision of groundnut seed subsidy etc apart from grabbing several incentives on the premise of being the drought-prone district.

The time has come for rulers to tackle basic issues including triggering in a climatic change in Anantapur by indulging in massive tree plantation. While it is mandatory for every district to have 33 per cent of forest or green cover, the district according to official figures have only 10 per cent of green cover.

This again is only on records while the actual green cover according to observers is a mere 2 to 3 per cent. This explains why the district had slipped to a precarious position of being a drought district. It is a common knowledge that forest cover generates a cooling effect in the atmosphere which induces clouds and cool breeze.

The moisture on the trees triggers in a transpiration and right atmosphere for ushering in rains. The district requires creation of natural conditions which is a massive green cover which induces cool climate, a prelude to experiencing a rainfall.

Speaking to The Hans India, Ground Water department Deputy Director P Purushothama Reddy observed that green cover provides the perfect environment for altering the climatic conditions of the district. If the mountains have forest cover it is easy for the rains to enter the district hassle-free.

Green cover and ground water re-charging measures are the two sides of the same coin that needs to be achieved on a mission mode. Every farm land must have a farm pond, trenches around the field and other rainwater harvesting structures for storage of rain water. If this is done then it would change the face of the district.

The total geographical area of the district is 19,13,000 hectares. The rainfall recorded up to May 2016 was 607.7 mm. The total rainfall received in terms of ‘tmcs’ is 410 tmc of water.

Of the total rainfall received, 41 per cent is evaporation losses, 9 per cent is soil moisture, 10 per cent is ground water recharged and 40 per cent is run-off water. In terms of tmcs, it is 168, 37, 41 and 164 tmc of water respectively.

The scientific argument is that 40 per cent run-off water which is 164 tmc if saved through storage in farm ponds, recharge pits and other forms of rain water conservation helps in recharging of ground water while the evaporation losses of 41 per cent which is 168 tmc helps in increase of soil moisture as well as moisture on the trees.

Evaporation losses are not really losses but an investment in climatic change. If, not a single drop of water is allowed to flow out of the concerned farm land, it is an investment in ground water recharge initiative.

Promotion of agro-forestry among farm lands by farmers can quickly boost forest cover apart from greening the lofty and ordinary mountains.

These steps can combat the conditions that triggers in drought and redefine the climate of the district. By doing so, thousands of crores likely to be invested on providing artificial respiration can be saved by addressing basic issues and problems that can be rectified by adopting a scientific approach and educating the farmers on the lines.Reddy says that green cover first neutralises the hot climate which is a pre-requisite for cooling the atmosphere and for attracting showers.

The green climate would over shadow the rain shadow zone problem, tackle the lowest rainfall problem and ushers in a normal rainfall and combats the semi-arid climate on a permanent basis.

The farmers are also being advised to shift from mono-crop practices to multi-crop and inter-cropping practices and cultivation of water efficient crops like millets and pulses etc.

By:Ravi P Benjamin