ONGOLE: At a meeting recently held at Guntur, Officials of the Water Resources Department from Prakasam and Guntur districts, at a high-level meeting held recently in Guntur, decided to release 5 tmc of water from the Nagarjuna Sagar Project (NSP) to cater to the drinking water needs of Prakasam district.
The authorities have issued orders to constitute squads for monitoring and patrolling irrigation canals to ensure free flow of water in the canals.
District Collector P Bhaskar also directed the officials concerned to supervise the supply of water to the district through NSP canals from the release to endpoints. As per the discussions, with the Water Resource Department Chief Engineer Jalandhar at Guntur, the authorities have already released 10 tmc of water from the Nagarjuna Sagar Right Canal on Wednesday to cater to the needs of drinking water requirements of the two districts. Though the district Water Resources Department’s higher officials submitted their proposals for 5.68 tmc of water, the authorities have agreed to release only 5 tmc for the district. The water may reach the district on August 13.
In this connection, the district officials are making plans to supply NSP water to summer storage tanks at various places on a priority basis. It may take another 10-15 days time to fill all the proposed summer storage tanks within NS Right Canal irrigation limits.
Collector P Bhaskar reviewed the water supply situation in the district and enquired about the NSP water supplies to the district. To ensure effective water regulation and free flow of water in the canal by removing oil engines, electric motors on the bunds, and to prevent the use of water for cultivation, the S E- Water Resources department- Ongole Circle has been directed to constitute water/canal protection teams headed by nine special officers.