BENGALURU: With the summer approaching, the state government is gearing up to tackle a looming water crisis, especially with regard to supplying drinking water in Karnataka. While stressing on identifying villages that need drinking water to be supplied through tankers, the Cabinet Sub-Committee headed by Revenue Minister Krishna Byre Gowda expressed concern over availability of water in reservoirs for irrigation.
According to a statement from the revenue minister’s office, this February, temperatures were 2.5 degrees Celsius higher than usual, but the pre-monsoon season is expected to bring above-average rainfall.
Officials pointed out that there has been deficit rainfall during the Rabi season, however adding that they expect good rain in the pre-monsoon period. Gowda instructed officials to take necessary precautions to ensure that there is no drinking water shortage in the state.
The Cabinet Sub-Committee reviewed the current water storage in major reservoirs. Karnataka’s 14 key reservoirs currently hold 535.21 TMC of water, which is around 60 per cent of the average storage. Expressing concern over lower water levels in some reservoirs, the minister emphasised the need to carefully manage available water, considering irrigation requirements and future drinking water needs.
He directed the Water Resources Department to provide a clear report on the expected reservoir levels in the coming months and ensure that drinking water needs are prioritised before water is released for irrigation.
The statement added that due to long-term water scarcity and water quality issues, drinking water is being supplied through tankers and borewells to 66 villages across 13 taluks in five districts, namely Chikkaballapur, Chitradurga, Tumakuru, Bengaluru Urban, and Ramanagara.
Similarly, tankers and borewells are supplying drinking water to some places of urban local bodies across Chikkaballapur, Bengaluru Urban, and Kolar districts. The meeting also discussed identifying additional villages that may face water shortage in the near future.
Meanwhile, the RDPR Department has been instructed to make comprehensive preparations by reviewing past measures and consider additional steps to resolve drinking water issues.