 (Above) The canal that was dry since May 15; (below) Water flows again in the canal. Photos by writer |
Restoration of water in the irrigation minors and distributaries linked to the Kotla branch canal today brought smile back on the faces of hundreds of cotton growers of Maur, Rama, Talwandi and Sangat blocks of this district.
Earlier, water supply in Kotla branch canal, which used to feed about 100 villages of Bathinda district, had been running dry since May 15 on account of launching a revamping project.
The paucity of water, amid the cotton sowing season, had left the farmers in the lurch in the area.
Left with no way out, farmers had started cultivating their fields with the unfit sub-soil water, which was reportedly affecting the productivity of the land.
Probing the matter, The Tribune observed that the revamping project, in the name of which the water supply was stopped, had been grappling under litigation at the Punjab and Haryana High Court and the irrigation department had no authority to initiate the work till the court announced its verdict.
Mentioning the facts collected, The Tribune had highlighted the plight of the cotton growers on May 25 under the headline "Cotton growers wilt as canals run dry." Taking notice of the news item, senior officials of the irrigation department released the water supply in the canal from a far located dam, the next day. Running across miles, the water finally reached almost all minors and distributaries including the Talwandi minor, Bangi minor, Jodhpur minor, Mansa minor and Pakka minor, which are linked with the Kotla branch on Thursday evening.
Speaking over the phone, an elated farmer of village Jeevan Singh Wala, Gursharnajeet Singh informed this correspondent about the development, early this morning. To verify the fact, when TNS visited the Bathinda-Talwandi Sabo road, it was observed that almost all minors and distributaries, which were running dry on Monday were carrying water but at a low level.
When contacted, the executive engineer of irrigation department, Gopal Singh said, "Earlier, the supply was suspended on the pretext of revamping project but due to some legal hurdles, it was getting delayed.
On the other hand, farmers were in dire need of water supply to irrigate their fields for cotton sowing. Finally, senior officials of the department decided to release the water supply till the court announced the verdict."
No comments:
Post a Comment