VIJAYAWADA: Natural cities architect and Professor Vikram Soni underlined the need for conserving Krishna delta which is losing its fertility due to indiscriminate sand mining and illegal constructions coming up in the name of capital construction.
A few days ago, Vikram Soni along with other environmentalists flagged off the Krishna River Conservation Yatra headed by Waterman of India Rajendra Singh.
As part of the yatra, Vikram Soni toured some mandals of Krishna, Guntur districts and Amaravati region to study the environmental impact of digging of sand and water flows from August 2 to 5.
Addressing a press conference here on Sunday, Vikram Soni predicted that in next two decades, the fertile lands in Krishna delta will become a desert if the State Government does not halt indiscriminate sand mining in Krishna river.
He said, “Sand is very useful to hold water in the river and it will ultimately increase the sweetness of the water on either side of the river. If there is no sand in the river, rain water or river water will flow swiftly towards sea very leading to decline in ground water on either side of Krishna river.”
The professor further said the team had noticed that total depth of sand varies from 30 meters in the riverbed to five meters in the outlying area of the river and felt it was unusual. He said it is important for rivers to have sufficient sand to maintain ecological balance.
He lamented how the entire natural river flow system, existing for millions of years, has been ruined by people for the sake of money by selling each tractor sand for a meagre price.
Soni also suggested to increase drip irrigation and bore well water for cultivation of crops to save the floodplain of Krishna river from Prakasam barrage to Diviseema.
Adding that decreasing water supplies from right and left canal is putting pressure on bore wells and groundwater, he said, “We must ensure flow of water in Krishna river to check man made disasters and check ingress of saline water from the sea, besides saving the fertility of the soil.”