PAMPORE: Superintending Engineer Hydraulic Circle Pulwama/Shopian Er Nazir Ahmad and number of officers from Irrigation, Flood control and agriculture departments visited Bujhibagh Patalbagh, Samboora Hatiwara villages of Pampore area of South Kashmir’s Pulwama district.
The officers assessed the functioning of lift irrigation schemes in Bujibagh Patalbagh, Hatiwara Samboora and Kakapora areas, officials told Kashmir Reader.
The Superintendent Engineer Hydraulic Circle Pulwama, Shopian Er Nazir Ahmad was accompanied by Executive Engineer Irrigation division Pulwama Er Faried Hussain Reshi, Executive Engineer Irrigation Mechanical Division Awantipora Er Gunjeet Sing, Executive Engineer Flood control Division Kakapora Er Jalal Ud Din, Assistant Executive Engineer Flood Control Pampore Er Faisal Farooq, Assistant Executive Engineer Mechanical Samboora Er Aijaz Ahmad, Assistant Executive Engineer Mechanical Awantipora Er Ashiq Ahmad, Assistant Engineer Irrigation Pampore Er Younis Majid and JE’s of Civil and Mechanical wing Pulwama Irrigation and Agriculture department officials
The officials also visited paddy fields at Bujibagh Pampore and other areas to asses facility of irrigation of paddy in the areas.
The Superintendent Engineer along with other officials also interacted with the farmers at Bujhibagh and listened to their problems.
” The Samboora village is fed by Jhelum, this year the level of water was down in the river due to climate change which was near to 7 inch,” Assistant Engineer Irrigation Pampore, Younis Majeed told Kashmir Reader, adding that they provided water to 90 percent paddy land.
He said that the department rationalised the supply of irrigation water to cater to whole area.
He added that they have installed drought pumps which are working at different places.
He added that they are planning to develop a pile type structure which can be taken into the interior of the river.
He told Kashmir Reader that with this structure they will be able to provide even leap flow of water to farmers.
” We are also looking to install portable pumps of 5 cusec capacity which will be reserved when normal pumps don’t work, ” he said, adding that they are working on future strategies to deal with the situation.
“This season gave us a lesson to remain prepared for the future, ” he said, adding that they have been working tirelessly on short term and permanent solutions.
A local farmer Javid Ahmad told Kashmir Reader that normal pump stations were not delivering water.
“This time rain has increased water level in Jhelum and pumps are working but this is not a permanent solution,” he said, adding they proposed construction of a vertical pump station at Musafir graveyard Samboora.

BILAL HABIB