Tral’s Kangloora residents seek immediate concreting of irrigation canal
Pulwama: Farmers from Kangloora village in Tral area of south Kashmir’s Pulwama district on Tuesday appealed to the authorities to undertake complete concreting of an irrigation canal originating from Watal Ara, alleging that persistent leakages have drastically reduced the flow of water to their paddy fields.
The aggrieved farmers said the canal serves as a vital source of irrigation for hundreds of kanals of agricultural land in the area. However, due to its dilapidated condition and lack of proper lining, a substantial quantity of water seeps into the ground before reaching the tail-end villages, affecting paddy cultivation during the crucial sowing season.
According to locals, the Rural Development Department (RDD) has been carrying out limited concreting work on small stretches of the canal every year.
They said only around 50 to 100 feet of the canal is being concreted annually, a pace they described as insufficient to address the larger problem.
“We have been facing this issue for several years. Large portions of the canal remain unlined, resulting in massive water leakages. By the time the water reaches our fields, the flow is too little to meet irrigation requirements,” said a local farmer.
Another grower said that paddy cultivation is heavily dependent on a steady supply of water and any disruption directly impacts agricultural productivity and farmers’ livelihoods.
“Every year officials carry out minor patchwork, but that does not solve the problem. What is needed is complete concreting of the canal in one go so that water reaches all farming areas without losses,” he said.
The farmers expressed concern that if the issue remains unresolved, agricultural activities in the area could suffer significantly during the current cultivation season. They said many farmers have already started preparing their fields for paddy transplantation and are worried about the availability of irrigation water in the coming weeks.
A group of local residents urged the area’s elected representative and concerned officials to take immediate notice of their demands.
“We appeal to the MLA Tral and officers of the Rural Development Department to visit the area and assess the situation on the ground. The canal is the lifeline of our agriculture sector, and its complete concreting should be taken up on priority,” said another resident.
The locals maintained that investing in the canal’s restoration would not only prevent water wastage but also improve irrigation efficiency, benefiting hundreds of farming families dependent on agriculture for their livelihood.
The farmers have hoped that the authorities will sanction funds and initiate a comprehensive project for the full concreting of the canal, ensuring uninterrupted water supply to paddy fields across Kangloora and adjoining areas.
