Farmer supplies water to dry borewell

Rainwater harvester in Kolar prefers to give water to the Earth in the arid district

Even as the depletion of water level in sources gives rise to debates of various kinds, here is a farmer who has provided a solution of sorts to the problem.

Farmers all over the district are dependent on rainfed agricultural system and are all worrying about the fast growing aridity of land on the one hand and the speed at which the level of ground water is falling on the other hand. The overuse of ground water by sinking too many borewells has become a major issue of concern in all five taluks.

In contrast stands Ashok Reddy, an organic farmer of Rampur in the taluk- instead of depending on the water provided by the borewells, he has, in turn managed to refill a dried-up borewell in the middle of his farm.

Living about 50 km away from Rampur, Reddy, who is an MSc degree-holder, has been carrying out rain-fed agriculture with success and passion.

Reddy’s greatest success, however, could be said is the model he has set for others in rainwater harvesting. His farm has a pit to collect water at one end, while on the other end there is a dried-up borewell. Connecting the two is a pipe, that helps refill the ground water. The work of refilling the borewell has been going on for seven long years.

Cleaning the water

“The pit is not the only component in rainwater harvesting or refilling ground water. There is also a cement ring at 12-feet depth surrounding the borewell. The ring is a filtering unit, with crudely and finely crushed stones, sand and charcoal. This helps clear the water of any pollutants and sometimes even chemicals before it reaches the earth,” said Reddy.

In conversation with Deccan Herald, Reddy said he has been attempting to provide a connection between the rain and the arid earth. “I have also resolved never to use the water from the earth through the borewells or other means,” he added.

Coolant too

“Such agriculture and water pits in farms help in sinking down rainwater into the earth. It will also provide a coolant for the crops. Instead, if we dependent too much on ground water, we will be stripping the earth of water resource, which can obviously prove very dangerous,” he warned.

Reddy, however, felt that the district got enough water to fulfill the needs of the residents. “Appropriate utilisation of the water, however, is something the farmers should learn the put into practice,” is his firm belief, related to water utility.

Continuing on his philosophy as a farmer, Reddy says understanding the relationship among the Earth, Sky and Water is very important. “Only then can we widen our outlook on use of water.”