Pulwama’s Koil residents grapple with irrigation water shortage

Pulwama: In South Kashmir’s Pulwama district, the villagers of Koil are facing a significant irrigation crisis as prolonged dry spell of this summer continues to impact the region.
The residents, heavily reliant on agriculture, are finding it increasingly difficult to irrigate their orchards in the Karewa region, which encompasses hundreds of kanals of land.
Rizwan Ahmad Khanday, a resident of Koil, expressing his grave concern over the scarcity of irrigation water, said that due to the dry spell their apple orchards are under stress and need immediate irrigation at this critical time.
He said that a pumping station was set up in 1984 on banks of Jhelum River in Larkipora Padgampora to supply water to Koil, Banderpora, and neighbouring villages.
He revealed that with the shift towards apple cultivation in these areas, the demand for irrigation water has surged dramatically.
“The current capacity of the pumping station is inadequate to meet the requirement of irrigation,” Khanday said, adding that the ongoing dry spell has left their orchards vulnerable to wilting.
According to Khanday, farmers in the region are struggling to irrigate their agricultural land effectively.
He criticized the irrigation department for its failure to maintain the water supply scheme, stating that silt deposition has significantly impaired the pumping station’s functionality.
Dr. Shahid Ahmad Ganaie, another villager of Koil, said that the water crisis has been a persistent issue for the past five years.
He added that despite numerous appeals to the authorities and several site inspections, the problem remains unresolved.
Ganaie accused irrigation department officials of blaming silt accumulation, machinery faults, and low water levels in the Jhelum for the inadequate water supply.
He also mentioned that the station at Larkipora Padgampora operates only one pump, despite having the capacity to run three simultaneously.
“Some farmers have resorted to digging deep bore wells to irrigate their land, but this alternative is proving costly,” Ganaie said.
He told that the Executive Engineer of the Pulwama irrigation division, along with the DDC chairperson, recently visited the site for inspection.
While the system operated smoothly for a brief period during their visit, it soon experienced issues again once they left, Ganaie said.
The residents of Koil are now calling on the authorities to enhance the irrigation scheme to ensure a consistent water supply for their agricultural needs.
Nazir Ahmad Bhat, the Executive Engineer of Irrigation Division Pulwama, claimed that the Padgampora pump station is functioning smoothly.
“I visited the site yesterday, and it is operating properly,” Bhat said.
He assured that irrigation water would be provided to farmers as long as the water level in the Jhelum remains sufficient.
He also revealed that the department is considering a proposal to augment the irrigation scheme to address the growing demands.