SRINAGAR: The Jammu and Kashmir government on Wednesday said that there is no proposal at present to construct a lift irrigation scheme for Karewa land in Rohmoo hamlet of South Kashmir’s Pulwama district.
In response to a question by MLA Gh Mohiuddin Mir, the Minister for Jal Shakti, informed that a vast Karewa land extends from Kamrazipora to Rahmoo and from Rahmoo to Nowpora Nowgam in Pulwama district, where almond cultivation takes place. However, a significant portion of this Karewa has now been converted into apple orchards.
“This Karewa land does not have a stand-alone irrigation scheme. However, farmers use pumps and motors to lift water from Khanchi Nallah, primarily for pesticide sprays in their orchards. The Khanchi Nallah has sufficient discharge to meet the farmers’ requirements. Additionally, some bore wells have been explored to provide drip irrigation for high-density apple plantations,” the minister said.
He added that farmers currently rely on their own resources to lift water from Khanchi Nallah, which requires additional effort on their part.
“There is no proposal at present to construct a lift irrigation scheme for this Karewa land. However, Khanchi Nallah has the potential to meet its irrigation needs,” he said.
“To support fruit growers, the Department of Horticulture has provided 10 deep bore wells and 62 irrigation pump sets to orchardists. However, only five bore wells are currently functional, with the depletion of the water table being the primary reason for the non-functioning of the others,” the minister said.
He further said that part of the Karewa, from Thokerpora to Rahmoo, is also being irrigated through the Novkhul-Mirgund gravity scheme. (KNO)
