Deficient rainfall raises water shortage concerns in Latur, officials told to crackdown on illegal water lifting

Maharashtra Guardian Minister Shivendrasinhraje Bhosale has directed officials to take stringent action against the illegal lifting of water from irrigation projects in Latur district amid deficient rainfall and concerns over a possible water shortage reported the PTIOfficials said the available water has been reserved primarily for drinking purposes Bhosale directed the administration to give the highest priority to drinking water and remain prepared for the coming monthsBhosale issued the directions during a meeting at the Latur district collectorate on Thursday to review water availability and the crop situation the news agency reportedHe called for special teams to be formed to prevent illegal withdrawal of water from irrigation projects and directed officials to take sustained action against violatorsThe Latur civic body Maharashtra State Electricity Distribution Company Limited MSEDCL police and revenue departments have been asked to launch a joint drive against illegal water lifting from the Manjara dam and water theft from pipelines supplying Latur city according to the PTICrop losses to be recorded accuratelyBhosale said inadequate rainfall had caused considerable damage to kharif crops and reiterated the governments commitment to support farmers during the crisisHe directed officials to carefully record crop losses during cropcutting experiments and ensure that assessment reports accurately reflected the situation on the ground the news agency reportedFocus on fodder availabilityCooperation Minister Babasaheb Patil who is from Latur directed the agriculture and animal husbandry departments to make advance plans to ensure adequate fodder for livestockHe said cattle and other livestock were crucial to farmers livelihoods and authorities should ensure that a fodder shortage did not develop during the waterscarcity period according to the PTIThe animal husbandry department was also asked to guide livestock owners on fodder availability and proper managementDrinking water reserves in Udgir JalkotUdgir MLA Sanjay Bansode said the Udgir and Jalkot tehsils had sufficient drinking water reserves until DecemberHe said measures to tackle water scarcity would have to be initiated thereafterAusa MLA Abhimanyu Pawar called for steps to prevent water wastage including immediate repairs to damaged pipelines and action against unnecessary consumption He also stressed the need to create public awareness about the judicious use of waterMLC Vikram Kale urged the Latur civic body to take immediate steps to prevent water theft from pipelines and called for proper planning to ensure adequate fodder for livestockDroughtlike situation in 18 districtsThe Latur review comes amid wider concerns over deficient rainfall across MaharashtraRevenue Minister Chandrashekhar Bawankule said recently that a droughtlike situation had developed in 18 districts because of inadequate rainfall He said districtwise reports on the situation were being prepared for further reviewThe rainfall deficit has also raised concerns over crop conditions and water availability in parts of the state particularly in regions that have received inadequate rainfallwith PTI inputs