Floods or droughts,technology always has the solution
Karnataka is being challenged with a double-edged sword of floods and drought-like situations in several districts. The situation has posed an enormous challenge to the state government of tackling the two extremes simultaneously. The Karnataka State Natural Disaster Management Centre’s data, corresponding to the southwest monsoon between June 1 and July 24, states that parts of 14 districts—Chamarajanagar, Mysuru, Mandya, Ramanagara, Kodagu, Hassan, Dakshina Kannada, Chikkamagaluru, Shivamogga, Bagalkot, Vijayapura, Ballari, Chikkaballapura and Vijayanagara—are facing rain deficit and drought-like conditions. Other parts of these districts are also witnessing floods. The state’s reservoirs are showing some improvement in water levels and farmers in regions with drought-like symptoms are demanding a release to save their standing crops. But the authorities are holding back until the reservoirs get 60% filled. Farmers in the flooded areas, though, have no option but to wait for the problem to abate.
Either extreme is a direct threat to farming and agriculture, and in turn to the livelihoods of lakhs of farmers in the affected districts. However, when nature doles out miseries, technologies must be considered to mitigate the impact. One such technology has been successfully tried at Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru to rid the cricket pitch of water during heavy rains—the first time on a cricket ground anywhere in the world. It is a subsurface aeration system which is linked to a vacuum-powered drainage system that gets automatically activated when it rains, thanks to sensors. This system is 36 times faster than conventional drains, with an absorption capacity of 10,000 litres per minute. Modifying such a system for use in open fields and grounds across districts could help collect vast capacities of water in underground tanks during heavy rains. This collected water can then be redistributed to rain deficit and drought-prone areas to help farmers, without waiting for the release from reservoirs.
Adaptations of existing working technologies must be considered for application in times like these. Polish-Israeli engineer Simcha Blass’ discovery of drip irrigation in the early 1930s, which proved to be a boon for agriculture in arid areas, is a case in point. Similar examples of technology adaptations for the benefit of humanity abound. While we are no strangers to ‘jugaad’, these adaptations may come more easily to us, and they are certainly welcome.