Archive · 9 Aug 2026
Komatireddy Asks Farmers to Shun Paddy Amid Water Shortage
A big reservoir in India, called Nagarjunasagar, has very little water left.
That is because a weather pattern called El Niño brought much less rain than usual.
A government minister named Komatireddy Venkat Reddy told farmers not to grow paddy, a kind of rice that needs a lot of water.
He said the water that is left must be saved for drinking.
The minister thinks the drinking water will last only until June 2027.
Even sending water from another dam, Srisailam, would not be enough for watering crops.
So he asked farmers to grow crops that need less water instead.
Many farmers have already started growing different crops on about 33,000 acres.
The government wants to increase that to 1.5 lakh acres so there is enough water for everyone to drink.
Roads and Buildings Minister Komatireddy Venkat Reddy urged farmers in Nalgonda district to avoid paddy cultivation and switch to less water-intensive crops due to the water shortage and El Niño conditions.
The Nagarjunasagar Project reservoir is at dead storage level, with the available water expected to meet drinking needs only until June 2027.
The minister said even if water is released from Srisailam, there would be little scope for irrigating crops, and groundwater levels are already declining.
Farmers have replaced paddy with Irrigated Dry (ID) and other crops on about 33,000 acres so far, with a target of expanding this to 1.5 lakh acres.
The SLBC tunnel project is expected to be completed by August 2028 and, along with the AMRP and Brahmana Vellamula projects, would provide irrigation to about four lakh acres in Nalgonda.
- Who
- Roads and Buildings (and Cinematography) Minister Komatireddy Venkat Reddy, with district officials including Collector B. Chandrasekhar and MLC Kethavath Shankar Naik
- What
- Urged farmers to shun paddy and cultivate Irrigated Dry (ID) and other water-saving crops because the Nagarjunasagar Project water is sufficient only for drinking
- When
- Saturday
- Where
- District Irrigation Advisory Council meeting at the Nalgonda District Collectorate
- Why
- The Nagarjunasagar Project is at dead storage level due to El Niño conditions, with little possibility of inflows for irrigation; available water is expected to last for drinking only until June 2027
- Minister
- Komatireddy Venkat Reddy
- Portfolio
- Roads and Buildings (also Cinematography)
- Reservoir Status
- Dead storage; drinking use only until June 2027
- Cause
- El Niño conditions
- Crop Diversification
- 33,000 acres shifted; target of 1.5 lakh acres
- Recommended Crops
- Irrigated Dry (ID) crops, vegetables, horticultural crops
- SLBC Tunnel Completion
- August 2028
- Irrigation Coverage
- About four lakh acres via AMRP, SLBC and Brahmana Vellamula projects
