Raising their concerns over the ongoing tussle between Goa and Karnataka with regards to the Mhadei issue, the Water supply Department in Valpoi, residents and farmers fear that if Karnataka Government starts diverting the river water from October to June, then the whole of Sattari taluka will be affected.
Eknath Paste, Assistant Engineer, Water Supply Department, Valpoi, said “Sattari’s source of water is Mhadei River. We are pumping Mhadei River water and supplying the same to the whole of Sattari taluka. Besides Sattari, we are supplying the river water to Ponda and also to the capital city of Panjim.
Paste said that the Goa Government had proposed to construct a dam in Charavne village, in Sattari. But he is not aware as to what has happened to this proposal.
“If Mhadei river water diverted to ‘Kalsa Bhanduri’ project, then Sattari people will face water problems. Around 50,000 residents in the taluka depend on Mhadei river water. And if water is diverted then Dabose water treatment plant and other small water plants in Sattari will fall short of water and there will be a crisis like situation,” said Ranjeetsing Rane, a social worker.
“As a farmer I am using Mhadei river water for my field since past many decades. For farmers in Sattari, the only source of water is Mhadei River. If Mhadei River water gets diverted then all Sattari farmers will be affected”, says Philip Pascoal Mascarenhas, a farmer.
Satyawati Gaonkar, a resident of Velus village, says “If Mhadei river water is diverted then all the women in Sattari will face the problems at home. So we demand that the Government should not allow the Mhadei river water to be diverted to Karnataka.”
“There are around 3581 farmers in taluka who are cultivating crops such as rice, cashew nuts, are canut, banana, coconut and other vegetables. If Mhadei river water is diverted then the river will get dry very soon and all these farmers will be affected,” says Shah, Junior Engineer of Irrigation Department at Valpoi.
Farmers say that 80% of the Sattari taluka depends on the Mhadei river water to meet its drinking water needs. Mhadei River will get dry very early if the water is diverted to Karnataka and the water treatment plants in Dabose, Guleli, Bhironda and Paikul will face acute water shortage. There are around 13,000 households having water connections in Sattari. And around 3581 farmers are registered with the zonal office through Krishi Card.
The farmers claim that every year there is moderate rainfall in Goa as compared to other states. In Sattari, they don’t have dam to store water. The erstwhile Goa Government had proposed to construct a Dam in Charavne village, in Sattari but the same has been pending for the past one decade.
