HYDERABAD: Believe it or not, on an average, 1,660 tmc water is going waste from Godavari river into the sea every year.
The irrigation department officials, who are determined to utilise Godavari waters to its optimal level, examined the water flows in Godavari in the last 40 years. The startling revelation is that on an average 1,660 tmc is going waste into the sea every year. The wastage is recorded even in severe drought seasons too.
The maximum water that flowed from Godavari into the sea is recorded in 1986. In 1986 alone, 3,000 tmc water flowed from Godavari into the sea.
In the normal flood years, the average flows were 2,000 tmc every year. When there were no rains and state witnessed severe drought, still the water wasted from Godavari into the sea is around 900 tmc. Mostly, the water is going from Godavari into sea between June and October every year.
To utilise Godavari waters properly, the state government has planned to construct major lift irrigation projects, check dams and barrages on Godavari. It has also proposed three major barrages at Medigadda, Tupakula Gudem and Tummadi Hatti.
There are virgin catchments where Indravati and Pranahita joins the Godavari, an official in the irrigation department said.
“We are planning to construct 250 bridges in the state and all the bridges will have check dams. These will check the wastage of water from Godavari and it will be utilised for irrigation and drinking water needs,” an official in the roads and buildings department told Express. Construction of check dams will also improve the ground water table, the official added.
GRMB MEET TODAY: Meanwhile, the Godavari River Management Board (GRMB) meeting will be held here on Friday. As there were no contentious issues on Godavari between Andhra Pradesh and Telangana states it could be a formal meeting, an official said.