ONGOLE: Demand for Krishna water from Nagarjuna Sagar Project (NSP) canal is increasing in Prakasam as all 12 Assembly segments in the district are facing a water crisis.
Leaders are strongly demanding that water be supplied to their areas through the NSP canals.
Recently, villagers and farmers living near Musi river staged a protest at the collectorate junction; MLAs submitted pleas to Irrigation Minister P Anil Kumar requesting water supply to their areas.
According to information, the district has received surplus rainfall for this Kharif season.
But the above mentioned Assembly segments were still struggling for drinking and irrigation water as those areas received low rainfall this season.
As per the records, around 150 to 200 villages of the district, including the district headquarters Ongole are facing severe water problems.
Recently, a large number of villagers and farmers from Kondapi Assembly constituency staged a protest dharna in front of the Collectorate and demanded the release of NSP water into the rivulet Musi, which was once the lifeline of around 76 villages.
Kondapi MLA D Bala Veeranjaneya Swamy has also written to the government requesting the same. Kondapi YSRC in-charge Venkaiah met the irrigation minister and other ministers Balineni Srinivasa Reddy and Aadimulapu Suresh at minister Balineni’s residence on Thursday and submitted a memorandum on water release to Musi river. “Due to little rains, domestic animals are dying.
As groundwater levels have drastically decreased, villagers are completely dependent on regular water supply.” Venkaiah said.
Considering the urgency of the situation, the ministers have directed the district authorities to respond quickly and take appropriate action to tackle the situation.
Balineni also issued clear instructions to the district collector P Bhaskar, in a review meeting here on Thursday evening, to fill up all the summer storage water tanks as well as the Gundlakamma Reservoir up to maximum level. “If you come across any problem in water release or the free flow of water in the canals, put it to my notice and the problems will be solved immediately,” Balineni told the collector.