Krishna river ecology under stress

With Karnataka building watersheds, small barrages at several places, pressure is mounting on the river ecosystem, according to officials

Hyderabad: Krishna river basin States of Maharashtra, Karnataka, Telangana and Andhra Pradesh are ignoring the river training works. Though the Central Water Commission has described the river Krishna, a safe river, excessive human intervention from these States has been bringing the river ecology under stress. This, in turn, could pose serious troubles to the river course in future and populations depending on it.

Speaking to The Hans India, a senior official from the Central Water Commission’s River Morphology Directorate said he river morphological studies had been carried out to figure out whether the river, like any other rivers like Ganga, Brahmaputra had been showing the signs of changing its course.

“As part of this, right from its originating point to its confluence with the sea, impact of the river behaviour on each and every 10 km stretch of the river bank had been studied.” It was against this backdrop that the studies found no signs of Krishna changing its course and it was concluded as safe, the official added.

The studies help in two ways, firstly, to take up River Training Works (RTW) scientifically to strengthen stretches of the river bunds so as to train the river to stick to its present course. Secondly, the studies help in strengthening the vulnerable stretches of the river bunds from breaching during the floods.

However, last time that the RTW along the Krishna River had been taken in both the Telugu States was during 2009, when heavy floods ravaged Kurnool, Mahbubnagar, Nalgonda and Krishna districts. Since then, “the very word of river training had been a forgotten and there were neither any one from the higher-ups ever asked nor had any proposals mooted to carry out the RTWs,” said a senior official from the State irrigation Department.

Similarly, except in Cauvery basin, the upper riparian State of Karnataka has not taken up any RTW for Krishna and its tributaries, and it was the same, in case with the neighbouring Maharashtra.

Adding to it, the width of the river course of Krishna at many places in Karnataka is considerably less. This makes that State to come up retaining the water, building watersheds, small barrages at several places with low investment. Besides, number of pumping houses were built to divert the water for irrigation purpose at several places along the river course.

All this has been leaving fewer inflows reaching to the downstream States of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh. Complete diversion of river flows mainly to meet the water intensive crops like paddy leaving outflows of Krishna water into sea reaching to zero.

Falling water follows, zero outflows into the sea, increasing formation of sand dunes on the river bed are a few known factors showing the signs of mounting pressure on the river ecosystem. “These are serious issues needed attention of not one, but, all the States of the river basin. Otherwise, there is nothing that could prevent the Krishna to reorient its ecosystem and change its course, the official added.

By V R C Phaniharan