Farmer Adi Narayana continued to sink eight bore wells over a decade’s time to irrigate his farm, all of which failed. The undaunted septuagenarian decided to go for the ninth one in 2021, which yielded abundant water. He now grows paddy, betel leaves, jowar and tomato, in rotation.
The difference is not only the unrelenting farmer’s faith, but also the water management initiatives taken up over River Chitravati in the last six years. ‘Project Jaldhara’ taken up by S.M. Sehgal Foundation, in association with Coca Cola India Foundation, improved livelihoods of 6,750 beneficiaries in the belt of villages that are not only known to be perennially drought-prone in the undivided Anantapur district, but also were actually inching towards desertification.
Contrasting picture
The region presents a contrasting picture. While the bordering Hindupur suffers from extreme drought, the situation in Chikkaballapura across the Karnataka border is home to floriculture and horticultural crops. The difference apparently lies in the continued neglect of water resources this side.
The farmers hitherto were solely dependent on monsoon for their single crop, mostly groundnut or jowar. The two check dams built in Koduru-Subbaraopeta and Madhurepalli-Kandurparthi stretches in the year 2020 became the game changer in preventing run-off and allowing percolation.
Sea change
In 2021, many farmers went for paddy, till then considered an unlikely option. Not just this, they are harvesting two crops a year, leaving the third to grow fodder for their cattle. “I am getting water from a 2.5 inch water pipe in my borewell, that too for several hours non-stop,” avers Golla Sriramulu of Madhurepalli, looking proudly at his standing paddy crop.
Paddy is grown in 180 out of 280 acres in Koduru village alone. From an unpredictable groundnut yield, the farmers stand as a personification of self-confidence today, growing paddy, maize and having diversified into coconut farms.
“There is a 35% increase in the area under irrigation and 75% rise in crop yield, while 82% of farmers have witnessed improved yield quality,” asserts Anjali Makhija, trustee and chief executive officer of S.M. Sehgal Foundation.
All the check dams are carefully monitored by the 92 members formed into seven Water Management Committees, including 17 women. In fact, Coca-Cola India Foundation received a national award from the Ministry of Jal Shakti for this water stewardship project.
Nineteen families that have migrated to Bengaluru in search of livelihood have recently returned home. This ‘reverse exodus’ is also attributed to the water initiative.
