Koppal: With irrigation water set to be cut off from Nov 15, five days ahead of schedule, farmers in the Tungabhadra command area have threatened to intensify their agitation, including laying siege to the dam and blocking a national highway. The early closure of the left-bank canal, necessitated by the reservoir’s decade-low storage, threatens standing paddy crops across 12.6 lakh acres.SB Malligawad, the superintending engineer of Tungabhadra Project Circle, confirmed the decision to stop water release from Nov 15.Farmer organisations in Koppal, Vijayanagara, Ballari and Raichur districts are opposing the move, demanding that irrigation supply continue until Nov 30 to protect standing crops.The irrigation consultative committee (ICC) had initially scheduled water release for 90 days, before extending it by another 10 days until Nov 20. Farmers argue that paddy cultivation requires irrigation for around 120 days and that the additional 10 days are essential to save their crops.The Tungabhadra reservoir, which has a gross storage capacity of 105.7 tmcft, held just 31.4 tmcft Friday, including the allocated shares of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. This compares with 76.3 tmcft on the corresponding day last year. Combined discharge through the left and right bank canals stood at 8,668 cusecs.Inflows into the reservoir have virtually dried up. After declining from 1,351 cusecs on Sept 8 to 915 cusecs the following day, inflow plunged to 70 cusecs on Sept 10 and stopped altogether from Sept 11.Poor post-monsoon rainfall in the Shivamogga and Chikkamagaluru regions has also affected inflows into the Bhadra reservoir, worsening the water situation across the Tungabhadra basin. The limited water available may have to be conserved for drinking purposes until June next year.District in-charge minister Shivaraj Tangadagi said Karnataka would release its allocated share of 7 tmcft into the canals until Nov 20. The govt was trying to extend the release until Nov 30 in the interest of farmers, he said, adding that he had discussed the issue with chief minister DK Shivakumar and his Andhra Pradesh counterpart N Chandrababu Naidu.However, the assurance has failed to satisfy farmers. Tungabhadra Raitha Sangha president Purushothamagouda said protests would be intensified unless the authorities formally extended the release until Nov 30. In a memorandum submitted to Malligawad Thursday, he argued that extending the release by another 10 days was necessary to save standing paddy crops.Points for GFXRESERVOIR UNDER STRESS* Current storage at 31.4 tmcft against capacity of 105.7 tmcft* Last year’s corresponding storage was 76.3 tmcft* Inflow stopped completely from Sept 11* Combined canal discharge at 8,668 cusecs* Water may need to be conserved for drinking until June 2027* Poor post-monsoon rain in Shivamogga, Chikkamagaluru worsens inflow
