The cultivated land along the Jayakwadi Dam submerges into the reservoir water when the dam is filled more than 70 per cent during the rainy season. The farmers along the dam face severe crop losses as their farms are submerged in the water. Every year, they have to agitate for compensation for their losses from the government.
Around 250 hectares of such land submerge under the water, of which 10 per cent of the land has not been acquired under the Jayakwadi project, officials said. Now, the Catchment Area Development Authority (CADA) has decided to seek a permanent solution to this problem by conducting a survey of the entire 250 hectares of land along the Jayakwadi project.
Famers incur heavy losses
The Jayakwadi dam is filled when the water is released from the upper dams of Ahmednagar and Nashik districts during the rainy season. However, when the dam is filled more than 70 per cent, the cultivated lands along the banks of the Nathsagar Reservoir are submerged under the water. The fields are filled with water and remain for around four to five months.
The farmers incur heavy losses due to the water-logging situation. The farmers invest lakhs of rupees in harvesting but do not get a single rupee back. They have been drawing the government's attention to this issue for the past several years by staging agitations. The farmers of the Gangapur taluka initiated a Jal Samadhi agitation in this regard two years back. They also agitated at the CADA office to get compensation for their losses.
Now, CADA has sent a proposal to the government to conduct a survey of these lands along the Jayakwadi project. The survey will determine whether the lands have been acquired for the project or not. Earlier, the government had given compensation for the crop losses to the farmers, said CADA Superintending Engineer SK Sabnis.
