WANAPARTHY: Even as heavy rains have been flooding streams and rivulets in North Telangana on one side, the farmers under Indira Priyadarshini Jurala irrigation project in South Telangana are agitated as they are not getting water to take up sowing operations.On Tuesday, they staged a massive dharna on the Jurala project demanding the release of water for the ayacut under the right and left canals.
Stating that there was an ayacut of one lakh acre under Jurala, the farmers said they were still deprived of irrigation facilities. Accompanied by leaders of various political parties, including the Congress, Left, and BJP, farmers staged a protest on the Jurala project demanding release of the water for them to take up agriculture activity.
“The farmers are demanding that water is released so that they can take up initial sowing operations till rains pick up. But, the officials are not releasing the water,’’ Gadwal MLA D K Aruna said.
She alleged that the authorities have pumped water to Koilsagar project and also to Gopaldinne reservoir on the pretext of supplying drinking water to the villages coming under Minister Jupally Krishna Rao’s constituency.
Incidentally, Jurala is the only project that has been brimming with water even as there is not much inflow from upstream Narayanpur project in Karnataka.