Medak MP M. Raghunandan Rao has urged farmers across Siddipet district and other villages in Telangana to use the ₹36,000 assistance available under the VB-G RAM-G scheme to build water recharge pits and strengthen groundwater reserves.
Rao inaugurated the first recharge system built under the scheme at a school in Chinna Nizampet village of Bhoompeta mandal in Siddipet district. He said the recharge pits could help revive borewells that have dried up because of adverse weather conditions linked to El Niño.
The MP asked farmers to use the financial assistance quickly to improve the water-holding capacity of their borewells and conserve water. He called for recharge-pit construction to be taken up across villages as a “mass movement” to prepare for a possible drought.
Rao also asked sarpanches, deputy sarpanches, public representatives and government officials to begin the work on a war footing. The appeal places village-level institutions and local representatives at the centre of implementing a groundwater conservation measure that depends on widespread participation rather than a single public works project.
The VB-G RAM-G scheme provides financial support to farmers for constructing recharge structures. According to the MP, properly using the assistance would help improve groundwater levels and reduce the effects of dry weather. The support amount cited for each farmer is ₹36,000.
Recharge pits are intended to collect and allow water to percolate into the ground, improving the availability of groundwater around wells and borewells. Their effectiveness, however, depends on local soil conditions, rainfall, siting and maintenance; the report did not provide details of the number of pits planned, the total allocation for Siddipet district or a completion deadline.
The initiative comes as a local response to the pressure on agricultural water supplies. Rao said borewells in the area had dried up and linked the situation to adverse weather conditions associated with El Niño. He urged communities to act before shortages deepen, while asking officials and elected local representatives to coordinate the construction effort.
The first recharge system inaugurated at Chinna Nizampet will serve as the initial implementation point under the scheme. The next steps identified by the MP are the wider use of the financial assistance by farmers and the mobilisation of village authorities to begin construction across affected villages.
