The Hindu : 700-year-old project holds hope for ryots

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Feb 23, 2002

Southern States

Southern States - Andhra Pradesh

700-year-old project holds hope for ryots
By Our Staff Reporter

KHAMMAM, FEB. 22. A 700-year-old irrigation system, Tularam project, holds great hope for the water-starved farmers of Bayyaram mandal. Obsolete structures including weirs and sluices which still exist near Gowraram village stand as mute witness to the system that was destroyed by the Deccan invaders. The Government had announced a Rs 4-crore package for rehabilitating the scheme. The NABARD had also agreed to extend assistance for the project.

Led by the Tularam Project Ryothu Sangham, an organisation floated way back in 1942 by freedom fighter, Bhuvanagiri Narayana Gupta fought relentlessly for revival of the scheme. But it had not materialised for many decades even after Independence. He made representation to almost every government during the past five decades, but to no avail. The Chief Minister, N. Chandra Babu Naidu, on his visit to Khammam district on March 10 last had formally sanctioned the Tularam project.

It was viewed a virtual triumph for the freedom fighter. But he could not see the dream coming true as he breathed his last only three months ago. A major impediment to the implementation of the project was the forest clearance from the Government of India. All-out efforts were made by Tummala Nageswara Rao earlier as Minister for Major Irrigation to obtain the clearance.

He visited the area and studied the utility of the scheme which was constructed by Sri Tularam at the behest of a Kakatiya king on Vattivagu -- a hill stream, abutting two hillocks. The Minister took stock of the plight of the tribal farmers who left the land barren all along the banks of Vattivagu for many years for want of irrigation facilities. A majority of them were small farmers raising dry crops like maize and redgram. Some farmers had large holdings, but they could not try anything more than subsistence farming.

He assured the farmers of steps to revive the scheme. It followed a comprehensive study of the issues

coming in the way of the project construction by the then Joint Collector, S. S. Rawat (presently in Nellore). The District Collector, A. Giridhar, and the Conservator of Forests, S. K. Chottray, had several visits to the place and talked to the farmers to iron out the problems. After going through the forest submergence problem affecting 208 acres, the administration had identified suitable land for afforestation and cleared the way for forest clearance.

Mr. Chandrababu Naidu and the district Minister moved the Ministry of Environment and Forests and their initiative paid off in the form of the visit of a high-level team of officials including the additional Inspector General of Forests (Wild Life), Member Central Forest Advisory Committee and Chief Conservator of Forests, Hyderabad, to the project. The Khammam MP, Renuka Chowdhury also made efforts to get the project cleared.

The project envisages an ayacut of 1123 acres -- 888 acres in Balajipet and 235 acres in Gowraram. About 230 acres of area was identified in Bethampudi village of Tekulapalli mandal for taking up afforestation programme. The Minister for Roads and Buildings, Tummala Nageswara Rao, said on Friday that the work on the project would be completed under a time-bound programme.

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