Now Reading: Cauvery dry spell threatens Karnataka paddy farmers
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Cauvery dry spell threatens Karnataka paddy farmers
A dry spell along the Cauvery river basin has left farmers in Karnataka's Mandya district worried about the paddy sowing season. Marilingaiah, a farmer from Kuntanahalli village in Maddur taluk, has raised…
A dry spell along the Cauvery river basin has left farmers in Karnataka's Mandya district worried about the paddy sowing season. Marilingaiah, a farmer from Kuntanahalli village in Maddur taluk, has raised a nursery of paddy seedlings on his two-acre plot but is waiting for water to reach his fields at the tail end of the Visvesvaraya irrigation canal system, which draws water from the Krishna Raja Sagara (KRS) reservoir near Mysuru.
Marilingaiah said that if water does not flow into the fields in the next 7-10 days, he will have to give up hopes of sowing paddy and will lose the Rs 8,000 he spent on raising the nursery. The KRS reservoir, located across the Cauvery river, is the key source for irrigation in the region.
Indian Opinion Analysis
The Cauvery basin faces perennial water-sharing disputes between Karnataka and Tamil Nadu, with the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal award and the Supervisory Committee dictating monthly releases. Mandya district, at the tail end of Karnataka's canal system, is especially vulnerable to deficits. If the KRS reservoir levels drop below the threshold for releases, farmers like Marilingaiah face complete crop loss, and the state may seek relaxation of mandated releases. The next Cauvery Water Management Authority review, typically scheduled in late August, will be crucial for deciding the flow.
Source: thehindu.com
This story was synthesised by AI from the source linked above.
