As much as 0.1 tmc ft of water went waste after the Bannikallu tank, the second biggest Hagaribommanahalli taluk of Ballari district, breached on Monday. The breach occurred following heavy rains in the villages of Holagundi, Morigeri, Sonna, Uttangi and Talakallu, leading to the flooding of the tank and the subsequent breach.
People in nearby villages faced a challenging time as the water entered their villages, flooding hundreds of acres of agriculture land where the maize crop had been sown. The 1,664-hectare tank irrigates 1,400 acres of land. A war of words broke out between the officials and the people, who said the latter had failed to take precautionary steps.
Rain lashes Gadag
Moderate rain was reported from Gadag city and other places in the taluk on Monday. It had rained in the taluk on Sunday also.
Showers have returned to the district after a lull of three weeks. Farmers now see a ray of hope as crops had started withering away for want of moisture in the atmosphere in the sprouting stage itself. The Met department has forecast rain in the region over the next few days. Farmers have sowed green gram, sunflower and groundnut. They plan to sow chilli and onion in the days to come.
Sowing has been completed only on 46.6% of the cultivation area in the district, which has a 115-mm deficit this monsoon. It has received 1.5 mm in August, against the normal of 75.4 mm for the month.
Showers have receded in Uttara Kannada district, with reports of rain only in Kumta, Karwar, Mundgod and Siddapura.
Published 07 August 2017, 20:29 IST