VIJAYAWADA: To benefit the small and medium farmers who have no open water source for irrigation, Chief Minister YS Jagan Mohan Reddy will launch YSR Jala Kala on Monday. Under the scheme, borewells will be dug free of cost to the needy farmers. The scheme is estimated to bring in five lakh acres under cultivation through groundwater irrigation.
During his 3,648-km padayatra, Jagan met farmers, whose fields were parched due to lack of water sources. They explained how they were being pushed into debts by drilling borewells. After seeing their distress, Jagan promised to provide borewells to farmers having fields in uplands and included the same in the Navaratnalu (nine promises made by the YSRC before the elections).
With the launch of the scheme, one more election promise joins the long list of promises kept by the Jagan Mohan Reddy government. Around three lakh farmers will be benefitted from YSR Jala Kala, which is estimated to cost Rs 2,340 crore in four years. The government plans to drill about two lakh borewells to enable groundwater irrigation to the upland farmers and those in arid areas depending on the availability and the level of water table.
The eligible farmers can apply either online or through the village secretariats. The applications will be scrutinised after hydrogeological and geophysical surveys. The State government has already identified drilling contract agencies — one each for every parliament constituency. A farmer or group of farmers with a landholding of 2.5 to 5 acres can apply for the scheme. The drilling of borewells will be started based on the feasibility in terms of the level of water table. Once the application is filed, the technical team will assess the groundwater level and give clearance to the drilling contractor.
The state government has also developed a software application to monitor the implementation of the scheme. The farmers will get text messages in their registered mobile phone numbers on the status of their applications at every stage.
How it works