BICHOLIM
The Tillari canal breached at Sateli-Maharashtra near the Goa border on Monday evening, disrupting traffic along the Belagavi-Kolhapur road for about three hours.
Authorities were compelled to stop water supply and this will affect the water treatment plants at Assonora and Chandel, as well as farmers from the talukas of Bicholim, Bardez and Pernem.
According to reports, the canal breached at about 3 pm and vast quantities of water began gushing into the fields and on roads, disrupting traffic along the Belagavi-Kolhapur road.
Sources said some children were playing nearby when the canal breached and water began gushing out, but they escaped unhurt.
A number of farmers complained of losses to their cultivations and authorities were in the process of surveying the damaged crops near the Goa border, as part of efforts to provide compensation to the affected farmers.
Following the incident, water supply to Goa may be hit and authorities are expected to being repair work which could go on for a few months. This halt in water supply will severely affect farmers in Bicholim, Bardez and Pernem, besides the water treatment plants at Assonora and Chandel.
The Assonora water treatment plant receives about 100 MLD of raw water, which is treated and supplied to Bardez.
Tillari Dam Assistant Engineer Balasaheb Ajgaonkar confirmed that water supply to Goa would be affected till the repair work is completed.
Farmers in Bicholim and Pernem have complained about the substandard work at the Tillari canal.
They claimed that the canal had previous breached a few years ago and water supply to Goa was stopped for about three months.
Meanwhile, Speaker and Bicholim MLA Rajesh Patnekar reviewed the situation and has requested authorities to resume water supply to Goa as early as possible, to avoid further inconvenience to farmers and water consumers.
