Raising serious apprehensions on the Mhadei issue, farmers of North Goa claimed that if Mhadei River water is diverted to the Kalasa Bhanduri project then they will be the most affected as they are totally dependent on the river water.
There are total 3,600 farmers in Sattari Taluka who are registered with the Valpoi Zonal Agricultural Office through the Krishi Card.
Farmers said they have been cultivating rice, cashew nuts, arecanut, coconut, banana and vegetables and claimed that all the plantations in this taluka are dependent on Mhadei River water. They fear that if Mhadei River water is diverted to Kalsa Bhanduri project then their crops would be affected thus depriving them of their livelihood.
According to farmers, if Karnataka diverts the Mhadei river water from October to June, then the farmers would be left without any other source of water in State especially for agriculture purpose. During this period, farmers require more water for agriculture crops and in North Goa, Mhadei River is the only source of water.
“Two decades later, Mauxi villagers have started cultivating the fields in the village. Twenty years ago the locals had completely stopped agriculture activities in the village due to acute water shortage. But now we are pumping the water from the Mhadei River for the agriculture purpose. If Mhadei River water is diverted then we will be forced to stop the agriculture activities in the village again,” said Krishna Gaonkar, a farmer.
“I have almost 3,500 banana plants in my fields. And my family is totally dependent only on this banana plantation. If Mhadei river water is diverted then my whole banana plantation will be affected”, said Ranjit Rane, a farmer.
“The State is facing water scarcity and if water from Mhadei River is diverted to Kalsa Bhanduri Project, then we will witness a situation like the one in Marathwada and Vidarbha in Maharashtra,” warned Vithal Shelke, another farmer.
