Kaptipada: Sunei minor irrigation project is vital for the agriculture sector in Kaptipada area in Mayurbhanj district. But over the years, the utility of the project has shrunk drastically as it has lost its water retaining capacity due to silt.
Years of neglect to dredge the reservoir has left mounds of soil and sand deposits. “If no renovation work is undertaken, the project will completely lose its relevance – and existence for ever – to farmers and deal a severe blow to the agriculture sector,” said locals. Besides agriculture, the falling water level has hit fish production.
Prior to 70s, the agriculture sector was in a pitiable state in the absence of irrigation facilities. Farming was solely dependent on rains. In 1974, then Chief Minister Nandini Satpathy took note of the problems of farmers and laid the foundation stone for Sunei minor irrigation project.
The 2,134-metre-long and 21-ft deep dam was built at a cost of Rs 40 crore. The project spread over 1,950 acres of land then, sources said. During the rainy season, the water-retaining capacity of the dam was 7,000 hectometre. It had eight sluice gates. While two of them were used to release water into the main canal, the other six too discharge excess water into a river.
In the Rabi season, the dam provided water to irrigate 5,200 hectares of farmland and during the Kharif season, 10,000 hectares.
Farmers living in villages such as Shalachua, Kaptipada, Majhigadia, Parasabadi, Sudusudia, Badakhaladi, Gayalmara, Jarada, Jamabani, Nuasahi, Kuanrpur, Rathipur, Bishol, Kanakpur, Parabadi, under this block and Radhe, PCpur, Teladaudi, Dimbagadia, Bairatpur, Kochiladihi under Udala block and some parts of Gopabandhunagar block and Berhampur area of Balasore district benefited from the project.
But, locals said, over the years, the dam’s capacity to supply water to large tracts of farmland has come down drastically because the authorities concerned have failed to undertake soil conservation methods in the upper catchment area of the dam.
In 2005, a portion (200 metres in length and 20 metres in width) of the dam caved in. However, project officials denied any danger to the project.
In 2009, Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik had visited the Kaptipada area to attend a ceremony. Before his visit, then water resources secretary Suresh Mohapatra, superintendent engineer of the department and the chief engineer had inspected the dam and apprised Patnaik of its condition.
Later, renovation work was undertaken with ADM help at a cost of Rs 20 crore. However, locals alleged that only Rs 3 to 40 lakh was spent on laying a tar road and repair of a nullah while the remaining amount was spent on renovation of the main canal.
Power supply to the dam has been disconnected due to pending electricity bill of over Rs 15 lakh.
Executive engineer of the dam project, Bijay Kumar Mishra, said that no money was sanctioned to de-silt the dam, although the higher-ups had been apprised of the matter. Farmers Ajay Sethi, Ranjan Lenka, Jiban Jena, Rupesh Pradhan, Bidyadhar Dhal and Sachchin Biswal said they have been facing a lot of problems for the last three years as no water is released through canals.
They demanded immediate action by the water resources department on the project and urged the government restore its health in the larger interests of the farmers. PNN
