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Potential projects; irresponsible govts
Thanks to the negligence of successive governments, the utilisation of irrigation potential created under major and medium irrigation projects is an abysmal 37 per cent out of the total irrigation potential of 24.39 lakh acres created during the last 60 years in Telangana.
​Hyderabad: Thanks to the negligence of successive governments, the utilisation of irrigation potential created under major and medium irrigation projects is an abysmal 37 per cent out of the total irrigation potential of 24.39 lakh acres created during the last 60 years in Telangana.
According to a report prepared by the Irrigation department this year, non-availability of irrigation water, unscientific methods adopted in the maintenance of canals, indiscriminate use of water by upstream farmers, poor maintenance of feeder channels & head regulators were among the main reasons for the dwindling irrigation potential in the last two decades.
The officials said that in the major irrigation project category, barring Nagarjuna Sagar and Jurala, the gap between irrigation potential and its realization at Sri Ram Sagar Project (SRSP), Nizam Sagar and RDS was more than 40 per cent due to various reasons.
At Nagarjuna Sagar project, out of 6.50 lakh acres of irrigation potential created, 5.46 lakh acres have been utilized, whereas at RDS only 23,400 acres was covered. The total irrigation potential created under the RDS was nearly 90,000 acres.
At SRSP on River Godavari, only 6.58 lakh acres have been utilized out of 9.65 lakh acres, officials said. Under Kadem and Musi projects, the realization of the irrigation potential was less than 58 and 70 per cent, respectively. In all, officials said the total irrigation potential created under major irrigation projects in Telangana was 21.32 lakh acres and the utilization was only 15.26 lakh acres.
Among all 28 medium irrigation projects (including Satnala, Vattivagu, Upper Manair, Ramappa , Bayyaram, Dindi and Nallavaagu), only 60 per cent of the total 3.23 lakh acres of irrigation potential has been created as ayacut.
| District | Potential created | Utilized |
| Ranga Reddy | 3.38 lakh acre | 34,500 acre |
| Medak | 1.29 lakh | 14,000 |
| Nizamabad | 1.71 lakh | 1.01 lakh |
| Adilabad | 2.79 lakh | 1.02 lakh |
| Karimnagar | 2.77 lakh | 96,000 |
| Khammam | 2.42 lakh | 1.80 lakh |
| Nalgonda 3 | .58 lakh | 79,400 |
| Warangal | 3.55 lakh | 2.76 lakh |
Irrigation officials said the Telangana government has drawn up plans to increase the irrigation potential by redesigning projects and improve realization by 100 per cent. For optimum utilization of the existing irrigation potential, the state government is studying new techniques adopted by other states.
“The ‘Tail-to-Head’ system taken up by the Madhya Pradesh government has yielded good results. Under the system, irrigation water will be supplied to tail end lands first directly from the head regulator. Later, the upstream areas would be covered ensuring 100 per cent realization of the irrigated area,” according to Irrigation Minister T Harish Rao’s OSD Sridhar Rao Deshpande.
He told The Hans India that the district authorities have been asked to take up measures for maximum realization of the irrigation potential through innovative methods.
By: Patan Afzal Babu
