Experts call for rethink on crop pattern,irrigation system

Chitale said growth in urban areas should be checked keeping in view availability of water. “In this regard,may be the next phase of growth of Pune should be in places such as Shirur and nearby areas,” he said,adding a total audit of water usage must be undertaken and proper utilisation of available water be done the earliest.

More,while establishing a link between proliferation of growth of sugarcane farming (It is a water-intensive crop) and drought,said that time has come to put up checks and balances in water usage for irrigation.

“The establishment of sugar factories,in rain shadow areas is a cruel joke and it should be stopped immediately. While Maharashtra has seen a decrease of 20 per cent in the production of food grains,sugarcane cultivation has increased by five-fold. It has also come to my notice that only villages which have extensive cropping of sugarcane have tankers for water supply,” he said.

Dahasahasra,pitched for 24×7 water supply schemes and said urban areas in the state lack proper mapping of water supply schemes. “Usage of high end technology is necessary for water supply schemes to stop water wastage and leakage,” he said. He also asked for out of the box thinking for solving the water shortage in rain shadow areas of the state. Drawing from the experience of Hirve Bazaar,Pawar stated that in order to solve the issue of water scarcity,proper planning of crops is required. “We have to plan our cropping calendar based on the water available,” he added.