Continued from P1

Farmers have been getting regular alerts on the rains and the El Nino conductions in recent times. Fearing non-availability of irrigation facilities during the dry spell, officials said, farmers were knocking on the doors of the Energy Department for new agricultural pumpset connections.

Energy wing officials have warned that the number of pumpsets could increase to 35 lakh over the next three years if weather conditions don’t turn conducive. Energy expert and member of the State Advisory Committee to Telangana Electricity Regulatory Commission M Venugopala Rao said that the increasing number of pumpsets is the result of the increasing agriculture-related activities.

According to him, the farmers are depending on ground water for farming as irrigation projects cannot immediately meet the increasing irrigation needs.