A detailed survey and project report submitted to government for diversion of water from Nethravathy, Hemavathy, Tunga and Bhadra to drought-hit areas has been gathering dust.
Today, one would have to think twice before buying agricultural land in and around Doddaballapur, Kolar and Chikkaballapur. If the shortage of water at the much publicised industrial estate near Doddaballapur is any indication, one can imagine the plight of farmers who depend on agriculture for survival.
With the groundwater level touching rock bottom, units in the industrial estate are compelled to buy water from private water suppliers. As for the farmers, there are hardly any irrigation facilities to speak of.
A committee headed by GS Paramasivaiya had, in a report submitted to the state government, suggested diversion and utilisation of west- as well as east-flowing rivers to augment the drinking-water supply and ground water recharge in these perennially drought-affected areas of the state.
The report had said water could be brought from rivers such as Nethravathi, Hemavathy, Thunga and Bhadra through gravity diversion. But, as with several other well-conceived plans to ease the demands on the Cauvery, this one too has been stymied by vested interests.
The state government had approved the feasibility report for this river-diversion project and had entrusted the survey work to the National Remote Sensing Agency (NRSA) of ISRO, Hyderabad, to conduct airborne laser terrain mapping. An amount of Rs15.6 crore had also been earmarked for conducting an aerial survey to finalise the plan for implementing the project of gravity diversion of west-flowing rivers.
”The government had assigned the NRSA to conduct the survey within one year. The NRSA had submitted the airborne laser terrain mapping for a garland canal and asked the government for payment. The government paid the NRSA for the work done up to 2011. However, the NRSA told the government that it could not take up the remaining work due to reasons best known to it,” Paramasivaiya told DNA.
He said the project was viable and aimed at utilising geographical factors to the fullest advantage. “The waters of the west-flowing rivers originating at a higher altitude in the Western Ghats can be diverted to the drought-affected districts by gravity. It does not require lifting through a tunnel to bring the water to the areas located at a relatively lower altitude.”
The plan was to divert 245 TMC ft of water from the west-flowing rivers. According to Paramasivaiya, Chikkamagalur, Hassan, Mandya, Tumkur, Bangalore (Urban), Bangalore (Rural), Kolar, Chitradurga, Davanagere and Bellary will benefit from this plan, besides supplying drinking water to Bangalore city. He said the implementation of the river-diversion project would also result in the rejuvenation of the groundwater table in the drought-affected regions.
Under the scheme, provision was made to construct 1,200 tanks in villages and 50 mini-reservoirs in the catchment and command areas. The other benefits will be development of sericulture, floriculture, horticulture, fisheries and tourism. Recently, deputy chief minister and minister for revenue KS Eshwarappa said the state government was committed to spending money on lift irrigation projects for the benefit of farmers in Doddaballapur, Kolar and other drought-prone districts.
However, KP Bache Gowda, MLA from Chikkaballapur, has made it clear that farmers want the government to implement Paramasivaiya report and certainly not the lift irrigation projects.
“We will get more water for irrigation if the government implements the Paramasivaiya report. It assures us of 12 TMC ft of water but we will get only 2 TMC ft of water if the government takes up lift irrigation projects. We will continue to insist that the state government implement the Paramasivaiya report,” said Gowda.
The state government had already floated tenders, inviting bidders to take up consultancy services for survey, investigation and preparation of a detailed project report for diversion and utilisation of the potential flows of the west- as well as east-flowing rivers.
The million-dollar question is: Will the authorities stop pandering to vested interests to fulfil the expectations of the people suffering in the water-starved areas of the state?
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