Kabani runs dry in Wayanad villages as water diverted to Bengaluru

Kalpetta: A severe summer water crisis has gripped parts of Wayanad as stretches of the Kabani River have run dry, leaving thousands of households in Pulppalli and Mullankolly panchayats struggling for drinking water even as its waters flow downstream towards Bengaluru.

Major pumping stations of drinking water projects along the river are facing acute shortages, affecting supply to nearly 20,000 households that depend on the distribution system during summer, when wells and other sources typically dry up.

Though water scarcity is a recurring issue in the summer months in the region, the situation has worsened this year due to scanty rains, pushing the agriculture sector to the brink of drought.

Residents said the river, which had adequate flow until last week, abruptly exposed its rocky bed, triggering concern. Mullankolly panchayat vice-president Shinu Kachirayil said people realised that water levels had dropped sharply only when the riverbed became visible, attributing it to diversion towards the Beechanahalli dam in Karnataka.

Being a dry zone during summer, more than 70 per cent of households in Pulppalli and Mullankolly panchayats depend on the drinking water distribution system to meet their needs.

To tide over the crisis that occurred in the two panchayats in April 2024, water from the Karapuzha dam was channelled into the Kabani through a network of canals and interconnected rivers. A temporary check dam was also built to prevent water from flowing down to Beechanahalli.

Water utilisation projects still on paper
However, long-term solutions remain largely unimplemented. Several projects aligned with the award of the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal (CWDT) are yet to take off due to financial constraints and local opposition.

Noted surface water scientist and former director of the Centre for Water Resources Development and Management (CWRDM), Kozhikode, E J James said the State must urgently improve utilisation of flowing water in tributaries of the Cauvery, including the Kabani basin. While the Supreme Court of India had permitted diversion of water to Bengaluru to meet drinking water needs, it should not come at the cost of upstream communities, he said, suggesting check dams as a practical solution to retain water locally.

According to a recent government order, Kerala is entitled to draw water from the Cauvery basin, including 21 TMC from the Kabani watershed in Wayanad. However, projects to tap these resources remain incomplete, with a deadline set for 2030 ahead of a review of allocations in 2033.

Administrative sanction has been granted for projects such as the Kadamanthodu and Thondarnadu dams to improve water utilisation in the Kabani basin, but progress has been slow.

James pointed out that while river water continues to flow away, time is also running out. “We should learn effective water management techniques from neighbouring states like Tamil Nadu and Karnataka,” he said, warning that the state may face serious consequences due to inaction. “Statistics indicate that monsoon rains in our watershed areas will decline, leading to more dry days than wet ones. We must act quickly to secure our rightful share of water- and do so in time,” he added.