Hubballi: Welcoming the Water Resources Department’s move of giving administrative approval for modernising Malaprabha main canal and distributaries at an estimated cost of Rs. 1,120 crore, and for starting the tender process, Navalgund MLA N H Konaraddi has termed it as a victory for the struggle of the farmers to get water for tail-end areas of Malaprabha project.
Speaking to reporters in Hubballi Konaraddy said, it would help to supply water till Gajendragad in Ron taluk of Gadag district. Malaprabha canal was constructed over 35 years back and is in a damaged condition causing loss of 38% of water through leakage. Water was not reaching the tail-end farmers.
Therefore, modernisation of Malaprabha canal was demanded, and protests were staged. The modernisation project would help farmers of more than 500 villages in Savadatti, Navalgund, Hubballi, Nargund, Gadag Ron, and other taluks, he said, adding that canal and distributaries of more than 116 km length would be modernised in Navalgund Assembly constituency.
The Malaprabha dam at Savadatti is supposed to irrigate 2.20 lakh hectares of land in the region. But, water was not reaching the tail-end farmers as the canal and distributaries were damaged, he said.
Malaprabha dam with 37.37 TMC feet of water storage capacity has deficit catchment area, and experts had submitted a report to get required water from Mahadayi basin. Therefore, the Kalasa-Banduri project was proposed, he added.
