MP ryots investing in ponds

Indore, May 27 (UNI) Vexed over the declining groundwater table, farmers in Madhya Pradesh's Dewas district are turning away from tubewells and investing in ponds.

A water-harvesting campaign that began last year led to improvement in soil quality, production increase and less power is being spent on irrigation. About 1,300 ponds were sunk and financed by 1,200 peasants in 250 villages of the district over the past year.

Other districts are drawing inspiration.

''The ponds, ranging from half-an-acre to 12 acres in size and seven to 30 ft in depth, developed additional irrigation capacity of 15,000 ha. We educated ryots on the benefits,'' said Collector Umakant Umrao. About 5,000-10,000 major cultivators, who could afford ponds on their land, were identified. Official statistics revealed that government efforts created 7,000 ha of irrigation capacity in six decades.

Due to water crisis in the past, the district's rabi crop dwindled by 70 to 75 per cent and cultivators opted for gram instead of wheat as the former required comparatively lesser water.

UNI