Karnataka officials point out difficulties in sharing Almatti water

In a meeting between water resource department officials of the two states,it was pointed out Maharashtra might face technical difficulties in getting water from the Almatti dam in Karnataka.

A delegation of senior officials from the water resources department of Government of the Karnataka visited the office of the Pune divisional commissioner Prabhakar Deshmukh,to discuss the matter.

Both the chief minister Prithviraj Chavan and deputy chief minister Ajit Pawar had announced that the state needed water from Almatti dam to tide over the severe water scarcity in Maharashtra. Water from Almatti would be used for drinking purpose in Solapur,Akkalkot and villages in Solapur districts at the earliest.

During the discussion,officials pointed out that the water released from Almatti,would have to travel 175 km to reach Solapur. They also said that water from Almatti was required in Karnataka for the running of a hydro power plant and also for irrigation, Deshmukh said.

He added that farmers from Karnataka had lifted the water released earlier for irrigation. He said that he has requested the officials from Karnataka to ensure water is preserved for drinking purposes only. The technical feasibility of the plan would be worked out soon and we would be sending a report to the government within the next two days. The final decision would be taken at the level of the chief ministers, he said.

The drought in Maharashtra has assumed severe proportions in the talukas of Jath,Man,Khatav,Sangola and other talukas.

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