No water for agriculture, but no shortage for data centers: Farmer leader
Farmers, policy makers and experts should work to create awareness about economical use of irrigation water, said former chief engineer and public works secretary GC Tallur in Dharwad on October 24.
He emphasized the need for disciplined water management, efficient use of allocated river water and equitable distribution to address inter-state water sharing issues.
He delivered the keynote address at an interaction on inter-state water sharing of Mahadayi and Malaprabha rivers. The event was jointly organized by National Alliance of People’s Movements (NAPM), SEPAK Karnataka, Eco Watch, Sarvodaya Samaj Gandhi Peace Foundation and Hubballi-Dharwad Nagarika Parisara Samiti.
Mr Tallur said inter-state water allocations have already been earmarked for the Krishna, Cauvery and Godavari river basins. Karnataka’s share of these river systems could support irrigation of a significant portion of the state’s cultivable land.
“Karnataka has a geographical area of about 190 million hectares, of which nearly 128 million hectares are under cultivation. The various river water tribunals have determined the amount of water allocated to the respective riparian states which was sufficient to meet the requirements of each state provided farmers did not grow water-guzzling crops and managed water efficiently,” he said.
“Efficient water distribution, however, remains a major challenge, especially considering the large number of small and marginal farmers. The expansion of water-intensive crops such as sugarcane, bananas and paddy plants has further increased the demand for irrigation. As monsoon patterns become increasingly erratic, farmers have to make crop decisions based on prevailing rainfall conditions and water availability,” he said.
Meanwhile, farmer leader Shankar Ambli criticized the Karnataka government’s water allocation priorities, questioning its reluctance to release five thousand million cubic feet (TMC) of water to farmers for agricultural production, while, he claimed, 15 TMC was being supplied to meet the cooling requirements of AI data centers.
Mr. Ambli expressed concern that technological expansion is putting further pressure on water resources. He accused environmental activists of applying different standards to agricultural and industrial water use, and argued that water releases for irrigation were often opposed even though large water use for technological infrastructure was considered essential.
He criticized environmental groups for opposing development projects and called on them to adopt a more balanced approach that takes into account farmers’ livelihood interests and agricultural water requirements.
Environmental activists Nirmala Gouda, Sanjiv Kulkarni, Suresh Heblikar and Mahima Patil were among those present. Representatives of farmer organisations, water resources experts and environmental activists from Karnataka, Goa and Maharashtra participated in the interaction.
Published – 26 Oct 2026 11:38 IST