Gujarat to release water from Kadana to protect harvest

The government of Gujarat has announced its decision to allocate 198 million cubic meters of water from the Kadan reservoir for the irrigation of standing crops in the Mahi River command area. The measure will cover territories in Kheda and Anand districts over an area of approximately 80,000 hectares. Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel approved the release of 5,500 cusecs of water starting from October 10, according to a statement by the Directorate of Information in Gandhinagar on October 9.

The need for this step is driven by a rainfall deficit: between June 1 and October 10, the state received 810 mm of precipitation, which is 89 percent of the normal level (for comparison, 975 mm was recorded over the same period the previous year). Meanwhile, virtually no precipitation occurred in the first decade of October — a mere 0.3 mm against a seasonal norm of 11 mm. In the current season in Gujarat, Kharif sowing occupied 83.42 million (as in the original text — ed. / note: lakh hectares, original units of measurement are used here and hereafter) hectares compared to the three-year average of 85.53 million hectares, with a more noticeable reduction recorded in oilseeds and pulses.

In Anand and Kheda districts, the total sowing area for the Kharif season reached 3.8 million hectares. This includes approximately 2.37 million hectares under paddy rice, as well as significant areas under vegetables (34,900 hectares) and tobacco (29,000 hectares, accounting for 77 percent of the total tobacco crop area in the state).

Earlier, on September 5, the state government had already adopted a comprehensive set of water management measures chaired by Bhupendra Patel. At that time, it was decided to allocate additional water from the Narmada project, extend supplies through the canal network and the SAUNI Yojana system, and increase water delivery via the Sujalam Sufalam pipeline to support farmers amid the predicted impact of El Niño. Officials continue to monitor rainfall and reservoir water levels to balance irrigation and drinking water supply needs.