Festival season has brought a bonanza for the residents of Ibrahimpatnam, who are now busy marvelling at and clicking pictures of their ‘Pedda Cheruvu’ or large tank.
Fishermen ventured into the waters with their country boats and nets, and a group of policemen kept vigil near the surplus weir roaring with copious flows that inundated BT Road to Uppariguda village.
Youths swarming on the bund have seen the 457-year-old tank overflowing for the first time in their lives. In fact, for most, their first knowledge of the lake ever having water began with the lines “once upon a time...”!
Rampant encroachment
Till three years ago, the tank had been completely dry. A public meeting was conducted right in the middle of the tank in 2012 when the Central drought estimation team was here. Hopes were given up and the dried-up lake was attributed to rampant encroachment of Firangi nala, a feeder channel meant to bring water from Eesi river. Also, realty picked up within FTL, betting the tank would never see water again.
Proving everyone wrong, the lake has become full for the first time in 46 years, with least or no help from Firangi nala. In doing so, it has also refuted the revenue and irrigation surveys about its FTL. The enormous water body has claimed back its space, not only from the houses and layouts, but also from a recently- constructed municipal park.
Fishermen vie for the abundant fish catch from Ibrahimpatnam Lake which is overflowing thanks to the copious rains in catchment areas, in Ranga Reddy district on October 14. | Photo Credit: Ramakrishna G.
“They spent ₹50 lakh on this park. Now, see where it lies,” says Santosh, a gleeful youth bursting with pride at the water spread of nearly 1,500 acres.
“The last time the lake overflowed was more than 46 years ago. I was just married then. I distinctly remember that a truck full of ‘Mosambi’ (sweet lime) was washed away, and people ran to bag the fruit that got stuck near trees and shrubs,” recalled Kongara Ramulu, a septuagenarian from Sheriguda village.
As it turns out, the tank is now fed by its own catchment area without any help from Firangi nala — an 83-km channel created more than 300 years after the tank was first constructed by Qutb Shahi kings.
Yeliminedu Vagu
Yeliminedu Vagu, the surplus channel from Akula Mailaram tank upstream in Kandukur mandal, has filled the Ibrahimpatnam tank with consistently increasing inflows for the last three years.
The stream adds to its flows from several catchment villages, including Timmapur, Madhapur, Chintulla, Yeliminedu, Kappadu, Pethulla, Ibrahimpatna, Sheriguda and Pocharam.
“The stream was earlier rigged with pits dug for sand mining. Over the past few years, we have repaired the whole route, and ensured inflows,” an official from the Irrigation department says, a claim promptly refuted by locals who attribute it solely to copious rains.
The surplus water from the tank flows into Chinna Cheruvu in Sheriguda, and from there to Indiramma Cheruvu in Anajpur, before filling several tanks en route, and merging with Musi river.
Published - October 14, 2022 09:13 pm IST
