Ninety-eight-year-old Ladu Sukaram Naik, for much of his life, cultivated rice in his field in Kankumbi, a tiny village nestled between the borders of Goa and Maharashtra in Khanapur taluka of Karnataka.
Ninety-eight-year-old Ladu Sukaram Naik, for much of his life, cultivated rice in his field in Kankumbi, a tiny village nestled between the borders of Goa and Maharashtra in Khanapur taluka of Karnataka.
Naik, now frail and needing the support of a bamboo stick to walk, gets nostalgic talking about how he would grow 40 bags of rice in the monsoon and 40 in autumn.
“I even remember elephants coming into the land and destroying some crop. But that was seven years ago. For five years I haven’t been able to cultivate anything,” Naik says.
Kankumbi, once filled with lush green fields of paddy and millet, is now caught in muddy waters — quite literally — with an ongoing water dispute between Karnataka and Goa.
The Mhadei river originates in the Bhimgad Wildlife Sanctuary about 30 kms from Kankumbi. While the initial flow is in Karnataka, much of its 111-km length is in Goa that drains almost half of Goa’s 3,702 sqkm area providing fresh water for agriculture as well as balance the rich eco-system that exists in the Western Ghats — a UNESCO bio-diversity hotspot. Any reduction in the inflow of water will lead to an increase in the saline levels of the river, thereby having a disastrous effect on the ecology of the region.
Karnataka says it needs to divert water to Malaprabha river to meet the drinking needs of its farmers in north Karnataka. The state demands the diversion of 7.56 TMC of water into the Malaprabha basin for which construction work on the Kalsa canal has begun. A tribunal is now hearing the matter and an order is likely in August this year.
As one drives into the village from the Mhadei Wildlife Sanctuary, that is spread across the two states, tracts of land, once fertile fields, have been covered to construct canals that have now left a number of people looking for other means of livelihood.
“There’s no water left in this part of the river because of the entrenchment. Their work is almost complete,” he says.
Naik’s three brothers have quit farming. His son used to work in the fire department but lost his job owing to alcoholism. He now does odd jobs at a government school away from his village.
That unemployment is prevalent in the region is evident by a quick look at the cars and bikes in the village. Most of the vehicles bear Goa registrations as the youth have decided to move to the neighbouring state.
Shashikant, 37, blames it on the poor facilities in the village. “We don’t have good roads, there’s no drainage, no effort has been made to put in place a sewage line here for years. Why would we want to stay here anymore? We’re there to help when needed in the fields,” he says.
A toilet block built halfway through the village road lies unused. Asked about the Swachh Bharat Mission and whether there were any attempts to implement it in his village, Shashikant says the campaign is only in Delhi. “There’s no Swachch Bharat here. It’s only in Delhi. Prime Minister Modi should come here and look at what is happening.”
Laxman Gawde, a former Panchayat member, agrees. “We need better candidates to win. We should get better roads, drains and clean drinking water. But for this, you need to have dynamic leaders who can deliver else nothing will change.”
Gawde has already made up his mind on who he will be supporting this election. “National parties like the Congress are of rich people and for rich people. They don’t understand the needs of the poor. I will back the Maharashtra Ekikaran Samiti. There’s a lot that needs to be done for the western region of the state and they’re the best to do so.”
Naik, now frail and needing the support of a bamboo stick to walk, gets nostalgic talking about how he would grow 40 bags of rice in the monsoon and 40 in autumn.
“I even remember elephants coming into the land and destroying some crop. But that was seven years ago. For five years I haven’t been able to cultivate anything,” Naik says.
Kankumbi, once filled with lush green fields of paddy and millet, is now caught in muddy waters — quite literally — with an ongoing water dispute between Karnataka and Goa.
The Mhadei river originates in the Bhimgad Wildlife Sanctuary about 30 kms from Kankumbi. While the initial flow is in Karnataka, much of its 111-km length is in Goa that drains almost half of Goa’s 3,702 sqkm area providing fresh water for agriculture as well as balance the rich eco-system that exists in the Western Ghats — a UNESCO bio-diversity hotspot. Any reduction in the inflow of water will lead to an increase in the saline levels of the river, thereby having a disastrous effect on the ecology of the region.
Karnataka says it needs to divert water to Malaprabha river to meet the drinking needs of its farmers in north Karnataka. The state demands the diversion of 7.56 TMC of water into the Malaprabha basin for which construction work on the Kalsa canal has begun. A tribunal is now hearing the matter and an order is likely in August this year.
As one drives into the village from the Mhadei Wildlife Sanctuary, that is spread across the two states, tracts of land, once fertile fields, have been covered to construct canals that have now left a number of people looking for other means of livelihood.
“There’s no water left in this part of the river because of the entrenchment. Their work is almost complete,” he says.
Naik’s three brothers have quit farming. His son used to work in the fire department but lost his job owing to alcoholism. He now does odd jobs at a government school away from his village.
That unemployment is prevalent in the region is evident by a quick look at the cars and bikes in the village. Most of the vehicles bear Goa registrations as the youth have decided to move to the neighbouring state.
Shashikant, 37, blames it on the poor facilities in the village. “We don’t have good roads, there’s no drainage, no effort has been made to put in place a sewage line here for years. Why would we want to stay here anymore? We’re there to help when needed in the fields,” he says.
A toilet block built halfway through the village road lies unused. Asked about the Swachh Bharat Mission and whether there were any attempts to implement it in his village, Shashikant says the campaign is only in Delhi. “There’s no Swachch Bharat here. It’s only in Delhi. Prime Minister Modi should come here and look at what is happening.”
Laxman Gawde, a former Panchayat member, agrees. “We need better candidates to win. We should get better roads, drains and clean drinking water. But for this, you need to have dynamic leaders who can deliver else nothing will change.”
Gawde has already made up his mind on who he will be supporting this election. “National parties like the Congress are of rich people and for rich people. They don’t understand the needs of the poor. I will back the Maharashtra Ekikaran Samiti. There’s a lot that needs to be done for the western region of the state and they’re the best to do so.”