Drought situation is looming large in the 13 districts of Andhra Pradesh, with deficit rainfall recorded in all of them, and the predictions of the weathermen for July and August are by no means encouraging. There seems to be no hope for the kharif crop, unless the monsoon turns vigorous in July and August. A delayed kharif crop faces the threat of cyclones in November and December.

The water levels in the reservoirs are going down alarmingly, with the level in the Nagarjunasagar almost touching the dead storage point. There have been no rains in Karnataka and Maharashtra and the levels are plummeting both in Srisailam and Nagarjunasagar. The Sagar right canal provides irrigation water to lands in Guntur and Prakasam districts. The left canal carries water to Telangana districts. The position in the Krishna delta, to which water is released from Prakasam barrage at Vijayawada, is quite hopeless this year. Only 6 tmc ft of water has been allocated so far to the delta for drinking water purposes and even that has not been fully released from Nagarjunasagar.

There is much wrangling between Telangana and Andhra Pradesh over the issue. To make matters worse, the water levels in the Godavari are also drastically down this year and the paddy crop in the Godavari delta (East and West Godavari districts) is also facing water shortage. Usually, there is no problem for the Godavari delta, at least for the kharif crop. Only the rabi (second) crop faces water scarcity sometimes. It is therefore a particularly difficult year.

In the uplands of the two Godavari districts too the position is grim. The Agriculture Department officials are busy preparing contingency plans if the monsoon continues to play truant in the coming two months. Farmers are also unhappy that the TDP-BJP Government is not able to deliver on its promise to waive the farm loans. Rescheduling of loans may not be of much help in the present situation.

>sarma.rs@thehindu.co.in

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