Don’t cultivate paddy this kharif, Andhra Pradesh tells Krishna delta farmers amid water crunch
The Andhra Pradesh government has advised farmers in the Krishna delta to avoid paddy cultivation during the kharif season due to severe water shortages. Low reservoir levels and inadequate monsoon rainfall have forced officials to prioritize drinking water over agricultural needs.
Why it matters
The decision highlights the growing impact of climate-induced weather patterns on regional food security and water management.
The Andhra Pradesh government has appealed to farmers in the Krishna delta not to take up paddy cultivation during the kharif season, citing an unprecedented water shortage caused by delayed and inadequate rainfall under the influence of a Super El Niño-like weather pattern.
Addressing a press conference here on Friday (July 24, 2026), Engineer-in-Chief (Irrigation) K. Narasimha Murthy said water storage in the Srisailam and Nagarjuna Sagar reservoirs on the Krishna had fallen to critically low levels, the monsoon rains having failed to arrive on time. He said upstream reservoirs, including Almatti, Narayanpur and Jurala, still had around 50 TMC of vacant storage, indicating that substantial inflows into the downstream reservoirs were yet to materialise. In the prevailing conditions, any inflows reaching Srisailam and Nagarjuna Sagar would have to be given top priority for drinking water, he said.
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