MYSURU: Two groundnut sellers have embarked on a mission which could address both agriculture and drinking water needs. They are campaigning for the river-linking project from Ganga in the north to Cauvery down the south.
Mukkadahally Venkatesh and his nephew Koodlur Mahadeva Swamy have succeeded in taking their initiative to the Prime Minister’s office. Following their missive with substantiating materials in April, the National Water Development Agency involved in River Development and Ganga Rejuvenation project, Union Ministry of Water Resources, has responded positively, stating that a series of links are envisaged that will link Ganga with Cauvery river. Since then, Venkatesh gets updates from the agency on his cellphone.
They had dispatched a letter in Kannada in November 2016, but the language turned into a hiccup. Following a requisition from authorities, the letter was dispatched in English later with the help of Vidwan Srinivas Murthy, a retired professor from Sriman Maharaja Sanskrit Patashala and S K Mithal, president of Akhila Bharatha Gau Rakshana Samiti.
Venkatesh told Express, “We sell groundnuts in train to eke out a living. After our work, we spend our time studying about water bodies.” The motivating factor was the personal experience of Venkatesh who hails from a village in Chamarajanagar district. With one-and-a-half acres of ancestral land in rainfed area, water for irrigation purpose remains a mirage for him, he says.