Agriculture minister Tummala Nageswara Rao on Monday stressed that everyone had a responsibility to conserve water resources with a primary focus on meeting drinking water needs in the light of the effect of super El Nino.

Inspecting the Dummugudem anicut dam, located near Ammagaripalli of Ashwapuram mandal in Bhadradri-Kothagudem district, he said super El Nino effect, which was driving global climate change, could lead to severe conditions of water scarcity due to deficit rainfall. There is growing concern on water availability for the coming summer. Hence, everyone should consider conservation of water as their responsibility, he added.

Keeping in mind the situation, the state government was taking necessary arrangements to prevent power shortages during the summer. He underlined the need to take up precautionary measures in the management of both water and energy resources.

He instructed the officials to coordinate effectively to ensure that only surplus water, which would remain after meeting drinking water requirements, should be diverted for other purposes. If there is insufficient water to meet drinking water needs, its use for other purposes must be restricted, he made it clear.

He pointed out that Dummugudem barrage has a storage capacity of 0.8 tmc ft, but it was currently only possible to store approximately 0.5 tmc ft of water. The Chief Minister has directed the officials to evaluate the technical aspects to maximise water storage through the use of sandbags.

He urged the farmers to make decisions on crop cultivation, keeping current weather conditions in mind. Investment required for cultivation can range from two or three lakh rupees per acre, hence the farmers should consider the availability of water, electricity, and groundwater resources while choosing the crops for cultivation.