Anantapur Prioritises Drinking Water as Super El Niño Deepens Shortages

Anantapur is facing a serious shortage of water because there has been too little rain.

Minister Payyavula Keshav held a meeting to decide how to protect the available water.

The district was expected to receive 16 TMC from the Tungabhadra Dam, but only 9–10 TMC has been realized.

Another 4 TMC is available through the Handri-Neeva Sujala Sravanthi system.

Officials said the remaining water should mainly be saved for people to drink.

This means canal water cannot currently be provided for farming.

Farmers were asked to grow crops that need less water, such as sorghum, maize, and red gram.

Officials must also collect information about borewell-dependent farmland within three days, while further water-allocation decisions await a Krishna River Management Board meeting.