Southern States - Andhra Pradesh   

Farmers oppose Thatipudi water for Vizag

By Our Correspondent

VIZIANAGARAM DEC. 8. The State Cabinet's decision to lay a pipeline on a war-footing from the Thatipudi reservoir in the district to the Gosthani pumping scheme at Boni at a cost of Rs. 10 crores for supplying drinking water to the people of Vizag is likely to snowball into a major controversy as ayacutdars under the reservoir have decided to oppose the Government's decision.

Convenor of the Thatipudi Reservoir Ayactudarula Sangam, Kommineni Krishnaswamy Naidu, in a memorandum sent to the Chief Minister and released to the press on Sunday threatened to launch an agitation to protect the interests of local farmers. He said that the reservoir level fell drastically during the last few years due to silting and also due to scanty rainfall. The Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation (VMC) which was to desilt the reservoir restricted its operations to maintenance of its pipelines, he said, and added that as per the agreement in 1966 Visakhapatnam was to draw 11 mgd (million gallons per day) and the present decision of the Cabinet would entitle them to draw an additional 4 mgd which is in violation of the agreement.

Moreover, the promised supply of water to 13,500 acres in 36 villages in Vizianagaram district was not fully met. This year, water was not released in time for the kharif crop and also for the livestock for 20 days in mid-summer, he alleged. Mr. Naidu said the current demand of water from the Thatipudi reservoir was also being released into the 10 infiltration wells (whenever they are dried up) meeting the drinking water needs of the people of Vizianagaram town. He said that if more water was diverted to Visakhapatnam from the reservoir the infiltration wells between Thatipudi and Gopalapalli in the district would dry up and create a crisis for drinking water in several mandals in the district.

Meanwhile, the district committee of the A.P. Rythu Sangam called for a meeting of farmers at Ramabhadrapuram on December 12 to decide the future action. The CPI (M) district committee secretary, M. Krishna Murty, in a separate statement, said that the Government should launch the Polavaram project on a war-footing to meet the demand of the people of Vizag, instead of putting the interests of people in Vizianagaram district at stake. As the district is already reeling under severe drought conditions for the last four years, the VMC should not be allowed to draw 11 mgd from the reservoir. The same should be released to farmers under the reservoir. He called upon people to launch an agitation if the Cabinet's decision is implemented.

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