By Mridula Ramesh In Telangana, politics is water, and water defines its politics, in a connection that stretches back through the sea of history.
In a cascading tank system, linkages are key; continual encroachment – both of the connecting channels and the tanks, together with a breakdown of the social systems lessened effective tank functioning: After all, why spend labour desilting a tank, when the water may not flow because a powerful upstream farmer decided to break the bunds, and take the water for himself?
Second, a subset of tanks, called system tanks, are connected to a network of other tanks and to the river through canals.
This highlights the effectiveness of the scheme in 2015, while making the 2016 impact harder to call.
These schemes (along with others like the drinking water scheme, important in regions plagued by Fluoride-rich groundwater) improve farmer resilience, which, as Telangana looks to be affected by climate change, makes this farmer-centricity a shrewd political move.
Ideally, system tanks with a dependable flow should be prioritised, so that desilting translates to better irrigation.
If one does not desilt the connecting channels, and prioritise upstream tanks, desilting downstream tanks will not result in a higher irrigated area.
The driver from Mahbubnagar bemoans two years later, “Follow-up is poor, and implementation is patchy.” He is not planning to return now.
Given that over 80 percent of irrigated land in Telangana is irrigated by wells, this politically savvy move helps explain the slowdown on tank irrigation.
Building resilience is a burning issue because Telangana ranks second in farmer suicides in India, and a recent study highlighted irrigation issues—including borewell failure—as a key cause.

Hyderabad: Prisons across Telangana, which were parched for over half of the year, now turned into water havens — thanks to rainwater harvesting pits, ponds, and to some extent the Haritha Haram campaign, which replenished the water table.
In most of them, the bore-wells too would dry up, leading to severe water shortage.
“It was then that we started water conservation activities three years ago,” he said.
“We had a programme to plant teakwood trees and planted about three lakh of these for the long run.
I asked the local authorities to dig a pond for multi-purpose uses,” Singh said.
The idea was to give prisons a ‘resort look’.
“When there is a pond on the premises surrounded by coconut trees, cattle and lush greenery, there are chances of them influencing the mental condition of a person who is lodged there,” he said.
Now, after three years, the results are visible wherever the initiatives were taken up, including the prisons in Hyderabad, Sangareddy and Adilabad.
“We have the ponds filled in all the prisons across the State.
A few were dug up with the help of GHMC,” Singh said, adding that the water table showed tremendous improvement, with no water scarcity in the prisons now.

KARIMNAGAR: Popular pilgrim towns of Vemulawada in erstwhile Karimnagar – Kondagattu and Dharmapuri – are facing severe water scarcity.
Such is the condition that the authorities at Vemulawada are not giving rooms to devotees citing non-availability of water.
According to temple authorities, there are nearly 527 rooms, including those for VIPs, in the vicinity of the famous Vemulawada temple.
On Monday, Friday and Sundays, when the pilgrim rush is generally at its peak, there is a requirement of 20 to 22 lakh litres of water for the temple while on the normal days, the requirement is around 12 lakh litres.
The supply of water is being jointly shared by the Nagara Panchyat and Temple authorities.
Incidentally, at present only 9 lakh litres of water is being supplied.
Of this, 5 lakh litres is being used by the Nagara Panchyat and the remaining is left for the temple.
This has led to a severe water crisis forcing the pilgrims to stay in private lodges.
When questioned about the existing water crisis, Vemulawada temple executive officer Dusa Rajeshwar told Express that such problems persists only in 10% of the temple rooms.
Kumara Swamy, a devotee, who went for darshan alleged that he was forced to take a dip in muddy water as taps are lying defunct.

Those who cannot afford to migrate are grappling with ill-effects such as yellowing teeth, brittle bones, deformity and weakness.
Most of the people in the tiny village, which has 30 houses and a population of around 100, suffer from deformity and several others are at risk of being afflicted by the same – courtesy: fluoride contamination in drinking water.
The remaining villagers who could not afford to migrate took up the task of identifying the cause of the deaths by themselves.
Although the villagers do not use water from the handpump for drinking, they continue to use it for other purposes like washing rice, water for cattle, bathing and so on.
The village has only three handpumps that form the source of drinking water.
Not just in Devanagar, but in many hamlets and Adivasi villages, handpumps are the only source of water.
The tiny house, indistinguishable from the rest of the houses, belongs to septuagenarian Ankavva.
Her entire family – 17 of them – suffer from illness caused by fluoride contamination, except for her two daughters who are married and reside in a different village.
So whenever the pain becomes acute, Rajanna ‘self-medicates’ by burning the area.
With no money left to continue treatment, Ravi has surrendered himself to Christianity, hoping to find a cure through a miracle.

The situation entered danger zone in over 1,000 villages.
The situation entered danger zone in over 1,000 villages.
Last year, the state government tried to supply drinking water by hiring private water tankers.
Situation in Karimnagar district is worst with the groundwater table falling to 16 metres.
The 24×7 free power being provided to agriculture since January 1 is also cited as a factor to the depleting groundwater level.
Funds have been stopped to all the drinking water schemes under the pretext of the Mission Bhagiratha.
With the work progressing at a slow pace, chances of the Mission Bhagiratha water reaching households in summer are remote.
So far, laying of main pipeline works to draw water from Krishna and Godavari rivers for Mission Bhagiratha has been completed.
However, contractors are delaying the intra-pipeline laying works under one pretext or the other.
While right of way has become a problem with property owners and farmers refusing to allow pipelines in some districts, people are opposing digging up of roads and not restoring them later to lay pipes.

Two villages in Telangana will soon get access to safe drinking water with Japan’s Grant Assistance for Grassroots Project.
A contract was signed in Chennai on Tuesday to provide financial assistance to set up the two water purification plants.
The grant contract for the project was signed between Seiji Baba, Consul General of Japan, Chennai, and Pushyamitra Sharma, managing trustee, Safe Water Network India, a non-profit organisation.
Elaborating on the Grant Assistance for Grassroots Projects, Mr. Baba said the Japanese government provided financial assistance to development projects being implemented by voluntary organisations and educational/medical institutes.
In Tamil Nadu too, a school for children in need is being constructed at Tirunelveli by Hebron Educational and Charitable Trust with financial assistance from the Japanese government.
The Consulate General of Japan, Chennai, which covers Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh, Telangana, Kerala and Puducherry, has supported various such projects since 1990.
Nearly ₹31 lakh is being provided as agrant to set up two water purification plants at Podichenpalle and Shankarampet villages in Medak district, Telangana.
“We are focussing on creating clusters of treatment plants to ensure viability and supervision,” he said.
The initiative will benefit about 5,000 residents in each of these villages as the plant can treat 1,000 litres per hour.
The groundwater in these areas has high fluoride content and salinity, said Anil Sondhi, vice president-technical operations, Safe Water Network.

TS Govt Asks TSPCB To Check Water Quality In 118 Water Bodies: A letter to the Telangana State Pollution Control Board (TSPCB) has been written by the Telangana fisheries department, to check the water quality in 118 water bodies in certain districts for the state for possible contamination.
A senior official from the Fisheries department, who did not want to be quoted said, industrial pollution, dumping of garbage and sewage water, are the main reasons for the water bodies, primarily irrigation tanks, to have been likely contaminated.
“They have already responded to us, asking on what parameters they should test the water bodies,” he told a leading news channel.
After the TSPCB penalized 18 industrial units in Sanga Reddy district, about 50km from Hyderabad, for letting contaminated water into the Gandigundem lake, the development comes a few weeks later.
Thousands of fish—120 tonnes, perished in the contaminated water.
It directed the fine amount to be paid to the members of the Fishermen Cooperative Society there, for Gandigundem lake.
A fine of Rs40,000 to be paid by another 11 industrial units as compensation to fishermen at Ayyamma lake was also ordered by it.
The Katla, Rohu, Brigala and common carp are the most common, among the fish that are bred in the state, added the official.
“Based on the committee’s findings on the analysis we get on the water quality, action will be taken,” he stated.
Closure notices on 14 industrial units in the Khazipally industrial area near Hyderabad for violating rules, have been served by the body, according to a press release dated 20 October from the TSPCB.

Hyderabad: The Telangana fisheries department has written to the Telangana State Pollution Control Board (TSPCB) to check the water quality in 118 water bodies in certain districts for the state for possible contamination.
The water bodies, primarily irrigation tanks, are likely to have been contaminated by industrial pollution, dumping of garbage and sewage water, said a senior official from the Fisheries department, who did not want to be quoted.
“They have already responded to us, asking on what parameters they should test the water bodies,” he told Mint.
The 118 water bodies are located in about 10 districts out of 31 in Telangana, he added.
The development comes a few weeks after the TSPCB penalized 18 industrial units in Sanga Reddy district, about 50km from Hyderabad, for letting contaminated water into the Gandigundem lake.
Thousands of fish—120 tonnes, worth Rs1 crore—perished in the contaminated water.
It also ordered a fine of Rs40,000 to be paid by another 11 industrial units as compensation to fishermen at Ayyamma lake.
All the 29 industrial units are situated near the catchment areas of the two lakes.
Among the fish that are bred in the state, the Katla, Rohu, Brigala and common carp are the most common, she added.
“Based on the committee’s findings on the analysis we get on the water quality, action will be taken,” he stated.

HYDERABAD: Even after the onset of the monsoon, there is no water in all the major irrigation projects across the Krishna River. All the projects including Almatti dam in Karnataka are empty now. The available water at Almatti dam was just 11 tmcft on Monday. Only if the dam is full will water reach Srisailam project, which will address the needs of the Telugu speaking states of Telangana and Andhra Pradesh, in one way or other. Interestingly, despite lack of sufficient water in irrigation projects across the Krishna River, AP and TS are not facing water scarcity for agricultural operations at present. There are several reasons for this. As far as Andhra is concerned, diversion of Godavari water to Krishna river…

The fishermen folk were also suffering skin diseases due to chemical contaminated water, Fishermen Cooperative Society president Pappu Ramesh said.
Open Yadadri-Bhongir: Over 10 tonnes of fish died in Pedda Cheruvu of Indrapalangaram village of Ramannapet mandal in the district due to chemical contaminated water from Musi River that reached the village tank on Sunday.
Pedda Chervu is one of the tanks in the district which is being filled with water from Musi river.
The Musi water which was contaminated with chemicals turned fatal to the fish that were being grown in Pedda Chervu.
This would affect the livelihood of 500 fishermen families in the area.
On Sunday, a huge number of dead fish started floating on the waters of Pedda Chervu.
Speaking to ‘Telangana Today’, Fishermen Cooperative Society president Pappu Ramesh deplored that they had alerted the officials of the Irrigation Department not to release the water to village tanks during the rains as the problem arise during the monsoon season.
But there was no response from the officials to their request.
He said that the nets set up by fishermen in Pedda Cheruvu for fishing was also damaged due to chemicals.
“About 6-7 lakh of fish seeds were released in Pedda Cheruvu as a part of a special drive taken up by the State government, but did not grow up properly due to the contaminated water”, he said.