YS Jagan suggests widening of canals for sustainable water management across globe

VISAKHAPATNAM: Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy has urged irrigation experts to deliberate on the concept of widening the canals to transfer water from one basin to another. A comprehensive plan should be prepared by experts which should be technically feasible, economically viable, socially acceptable and environmentally friendly solutions, to achieve sustainable water management, he added.

YS Jagan, along with Union Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat participated in the inaugural session of ICID (International Commission on Irrigation and Drainage) Congress at Radisson Blu at Rushikonda here on Thursday. The Indian National Committee on Irrigation and Drainage (INCID) would organise the programme till November 8, 2023.

The Chief Minister said, “Andhra Pradesh is a riverine State with 40 major, medium and minor rivers.The State has a rich heritage of agriculture and irrigation dating back to several centuries. The State Government is committed to utilising the irrigation potential in the drought-prone and upland areas to enhance the agricultural productivity for every drop of water by adopting the concept of more crops per drop as envisaged by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.”

YS Jagan said that the State was also confronted with many challenges faced by every State in the country. Though the State had a large coastal belt, regions like Rayalaseema, western parts of the south coast frequently encountered droughts due to scanty rainfall impairing the living conditions of the people in those areas.

“But Andhra Pradesh, being the lower riparian State with respect to the major inter-state rivers like Vamasadhara, Nagavalli, Godavari, Krishna and Penna. The State encounters water shortages during the lean monsoon years and also havoc during high floods due to intense rains in catchment areas. To effectively address this irrigation is the only possible solution,” YS Jagan said.

The Chief Minister suggested that water scarcity in agriculture must be tackled, as many of them would prefer micro irrigation and sprinklers. However, these kinds of initiatives were a basic necessity to conserve water, but a bigger debate should be made on transferring water during the monsoon season.

“When it rains, it pours. We are witnessing a situation where the period of rainfall is small and short in the number of days. During this period, effectively transferring the water from one basin to another will be the biggest challenge to address this situation of tackling water scarcity in agriculture,” he said, and added that experts should come up with a cost effective concept to transfer the water from one basin to another within the stipulated time.

Union Jal Shakti Minister Gajendra Singh Shekawat said that India had made revolutionary changes in the irrigation sector under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Highlighting the initiatives being taken by the Centre, he said that several dams across the country were being conserved by international standards through support of the World Bank. The Dam Safety Act was being enforced in the country effectively to conserve the dams, he added.

Shekawat also said, “India is growing as the largest exporter in the world and is exporting agricultural products on a large scale.” The Centre took several conservation measures to benefit farmers and implemented proper plans for groundwater conservation and purifying waste water through recycling methods, he said, and added that water should be used judiciously for the benefit of the future generations.