Farmers from a Dry Village in Maharashtra Connect their Wells to Create a Perennial Water Bank

The farmers came together and connected 30 wells to create a perennial water bank. Many nearby villages have taken inspiration from this model.

A farmer in Satara district did what we could only imagine. While the government’s river-linking project did not see the light of day, Jotiram Pawar successfully managed to connect the wells in his own village, taking the idea from the project.

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Thanks to Jotiram’s efforts, he and his team have managed to provide irrigation to about 150 acres of dry farmland in Dhavadshi village in Maharashtra.

Photo for representation purpose only. Source: www.earthtimes.org

The 40-year old farmer, who had been hearing about the river-linking project for years, thought to interlink the wells in his village and create a common water bank for everyone to use as the government’s project didn’t seem to take any shape.

The idea was simple, yet effective. They connected the target wells with pipelines and then lifted the water using an electric motor. Interestingly, it was a difficult task at first to convince farmers to share their water with other people.

Started in 2010, Jotiram’s idea got support from a dental surgeon Avinash Pol, who convinced other farmers to join the project.

Gradually many villagers joined the project, and today, 30 wells have been interconnected. The project has costed Rs. 7 lakhs and about 11,000 ft pipeline has been set up to connect the wells and farms. This pipeline takes water from wells and spreads it across the farmlands. The villagers are also constructing bunds to improve the water table.

The interconnecting of wells has helped the farmers in surviving the dry conditions when wells go dry. Many villagers have been inspired form his model, and nearby villages too have adopted this model to inter-connect natural streams to the lakes.

The water bank is providing a perennial supply of water and the Dhavadshi villagers have one man to thank for this.

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