It's being called one of the worst droughts the state has experienced in the last 40 years, with 123 taluks hitting the bottom where water is concerned. But experts argue the state is only facing a hydrological drought and not famine and all it needs is sound long-term planning to overcome it in future.
What is clearly costing the state is official apathy and shameful neglect of its resources. Consider this: While Karnataka has abundant sources of fresh water and can use as much as 3,600 TMC for its needs, its villages have little water for drinking or irrigating their farmlands during the drought which has become an almost annual feature now, which is also creating fodder shortage for the cattle and forcing migration of agricultural labourers who find no work on the fields.
Till date, only 1,600 TMC of fresh water has been harnessed through rivers, rivulets, lakes, tanks and major reservoirs and as much as 2,000 TMC is simply allowed to flow into the Arabian Sea, only because successive governments have come up with no projects to tap the abundant sources of water, especially in the Western Ghats.
“While irrigation projects across Alamatti, Ghataprabha, Narayanpura, Krishna and Cauvery have saved the state from severe drought, we need to chalk out regional water supply schemes by tapping fresh water sources. The focus should shift from digging borewells and building checkdams to reviving traditional water bodies like river beds, lakes and tanks to conserve water," says minor irrigation secretary, P.N. Sreenivasachary. With groundwater depleting, increase in surface evaporation in reservoirs and tanks and seepage of water falling, experts say it’s time for some serious brainstorming to deal with drinking water shortage. “Water conservation through afforestation and percolation tanks, strengthening of bunds, desilting lakes and ponds, building checkdams and rainwater harvesting are small initiatives, which can pay off in the long run. Changing the cropping pattern and adopting watershed methods can also help in water-deficit areas,” suggests revenue secretary, Ashok Kumar C. Manoli, pointing out that fodder shortage directly affects the livestock and the farmers’ economic well being.
To make fodder available across the state all through the year, he says it’s necessary to increase the yield of fodder varieties. “Fodder shortage is common in the non-irrigated belt. So it’s important for government nurseries to step up production of fodder crops to meet the growing demand. Fodder seeds are distributed to farmers who in turn sell fodder back to the government (fodder banks). Newer varieties of fodder and encouraging horticulture crops can go a long way in mitigating the crisis,” he adds.
As for people's migration during a drought, experts say it can be checked if the government cares to implement the (MNREGA) more effectively and create jobs for the unemployed in and around villages that take the brunt of drought.