Dry spell threatens paddy in Shahapur; ex-MLA seeks water from Bhatsa dam

Shahapur (Thane): A prolonged break in the rains has left paddy and other kharif crops in Thane district's Shahapur taluka struggling for water. Former Shahapur MLA Pandurang Barora has asked the authorities to release irrigation water through the right bank canal of the Bhatsa dam without delay.

In letters to the district collector and to the engineers who run the Thane irrigation circle and the Bhatsa dam, Barora pointed out that farmers in the villages around the dam live almost entirely off their fields, and that crops left without water at this stage could suffer heavy damage.

He has asked for the dam's water to be managed carefully and released on time, for officials to inspect the fields and assess the condition of the crops, and for the water to be shared fairly so that no farming community is left out. The administration, he said, should take a decision quickly rather than let the matter rest in correspondence.

With erratic rainfall already worrying growers in the area, farmers are now waiting to see how the district administration and the irrigation department respond.

Source: Free Press Journal