Thanks to the heavy rains between July and December 2020, Chittoor district is comfortably placed as far as drinking water and irrigation are concerned this summer. The groundwater levels have also increased all over the district, but for a few habitations.
“We have an excellent water table available now. Even if the situation worsens in summer, the number of habitations likely to be affected might increase by a couple of hundred. This will not pose any problem to us,” says Superintending Engineer (Rural Water Works) Ehsan Basha.
Good levels in water bodies
Compared to the previous years, the storage capacity of the Kandaleru reservoir in SPSR Nellore district, the lifeline for Chittoor and Chennai, stands at 52 tmcft this year.
The district received 20 to 40% excess rain, including in the perennially drought-prone western mandals. The Nivar and Burevi cyclones’ effect led to heavy inflows into over 50% of the village tanks and rejuvenation of the Krishnapuram, Araniyar and Kalangi reservoirs in the district.
However, the medical and health authorities are a bit worried with the surge in COVID-19 cases for the past few weeks.
“In the present situation, it would be highly risky for elderly people to venture outside with rising heat. The district generally witnesses sunstroke cases from mid-March till early June. The victims include farmers, farm workers and daily wagers and those above 50 years of age. Sunstroke conditions make them more vulnerable to COVID-19,” says Dr. P. Ravi Raju, COVID-19 Task Force officer.
