ANANTAPUR: Farmers in the erstwhile Anantapur district are facing acute hardship as delays in the supply of agricultural transformers and power connections disrupt irrigation during the crucial summer season.
Across Anantapur and Sri Sathya Sai districts, cultivators say new electricity connections required for borewells have been stalled for months, leaving them unable to irrigate fields at a time when water demand peaks.
Despite completing all formalities, many applicants are yet to receive connections. As per electricity department norms, farmers must submit demand drafts (DDs) to secure agricultural power services. Several farmers claim they made payments months ago but are still waiting for transformers and related equipment to be installed.
The delay has forced farmers to make repeated visits to local electricity offices in search of updates.
Many allege that the prolonged wait is severely affecting their crops, which depend on timely irrigation. Officials attribute the situation to a shortage of transformers at the Anantapur central store, which caters to both districts. Transformers of 25 KVA and 16 KVA capacity are currently unavailable.
Superintending Engineer (SE) of Anantapur district, Seshadri Sekhar, said higher authorities have been informed about the shortage and supplies are expected soon. “Around 8,000 applications have been received so far, and nearly 7,500 farmers have completed payments. Of the 725 transformers expected shortly, about 300 will be allotted to Sri Sathya Sai district, while the rest will be distributed in Anantapur district based on seniority,” he said.
“Farmers pay only Rs 10,000 as their share, while the government bears the remaining cost, which can go up to Rs 2.5 lakh for poles, cables and transformers. Hence, connections are sanctioned based on budget availability and seniority,” said J Moses, SE, Sri Sathya Sai district.
Farmers, however, say the delay is pushing them into distress.