Gondia guardian minister orders planned use of reservoir water, with drinking water and irrigation first

Gondia, Nov 6: Drought-like conditions have set in across the district this year, and water scarcity could worsen in the coming summer. Against this backdrop, Guardian Minister Indranil Naik directed today, through video conferencing, that the water of all reservoirs and dams in the district be used with everyone's consent, according to fixed priorities and proper planning. He asked that water remain available for farming as well as for drinking, and that no water be wasted anywhere.

The meeting of the Reservoir Water Reservation Determination Committee was held at the Collector's office, with Naik joining by video conferencing. Those present included MLAs Rajkumar Badole, Vinod Agrawal and Sanjay Puram, Collector Mandar Patki, Executive Engineer Sonali Sonule, R.G. Kurekar of the Itiadoh irrigation department, V.R. Pawar of the medium projects department, V. Matkawar of the Dhapewada lift irrigation department in Tirora, Mr Ganveer of the Maharashtra Jeevan Pradhikaran, Mr Wankhede of the Zilla Parishad's rural water supply department, Mr Paliwal, president of the Itiadoh Project Committee water distribution society in Gothangaon, and Karishma Vaidya, chief officer of the Deori Nagar Panchayat.

The meeting discussed in detail the water, reservation and future use of the Bagh, Itiadoh, Gondia irrigation department, medium and lift irrigation projects. Executive Engineer Sonali Sonule gave a presentation on the major Bagh and Itiadoh projects.

The Bagh project includes the Shirpur storage dam, the Pujaritola diversion dam and the Kalisarar dam. Their water is used under a joint arrangement between Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh. The Itiadoh project is built on the Gadhavi river in Arjuni Morgaon tehsil and extends across Gondia, Bhandara and Gadchiroli districts.

The large dams currently hold enough water for drinking, but the severity of the drought is feared to increase in summer, so strict water planning is necessary. The guardian minister also instructed that the required water be kept reserved in line with the government's decision of October 5, 2026. He said that, while water is supplied for farming, farmers should be made aware of giving priority to rabi crops that need less water, and the agriculture department should take the lead in carrying this information down to village level.

The Gondia irrigation department runs seven medium projects, 20 minor projects, 38 malguzari tanks, two Kolhapuri-type dams and one lift irrigation scheme. These provide protected irrigation in the kharif season according to demand, and the remaining water is used for irrigation in the rabi and summer seasons. Given this year's drought, it is important to keep the minimum required water in every project. The people's representatives said gates should be installed on projects to stop water wastage and necessary repairs completed immediately.

The people's representatives raised farmers' water-related problems in their areas and demands for repairs to projects. Funds were also sought to deepen dams and tanks to increase their storage capacity. The guardian minister said clearly that the departments concerned should work in coordination so that farmers get water as needed and there is no wastage at any level.

He also directed that, in view of water scarcity, rising temperatures and drought, large-scale awareness be spread among citizens and farmers about saving water. Village-level programmes should be run on economical use of water, proper irrigation planning and the option of low-water crops.

Review of Bodhkasa dam repairs: The guardian minister asked about the broken embankment of the Bodhkasa dam. Officials said repairs to the embankment had been completed and the seepage had been stopped completely. They also said responsibility for the project would be handed over to the Dhapewada project in Tirora tehsil. The meeting stressed proper management of existing water stocks during the drought, equitable distribution of water and planning with future needs in mind.