Ladakh leader diverts glacial water to revive farmlands
Summary and headline written by AI from the source article. How we work
Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena of Ladakh directed a project that now delivers 90 million litres of glacial water daily to over 1,000 acres of farmland across 12 villages.
The initiative began after Mirza Hussain, the village head of Chuchot in Leh, requested help with severe water shortages affecting local agriculture. Saxena and his team identified unused glacial water flowing into the Indus River near Stok village and devised a way to redirect it.
Officials assessed the flow from the Stok nallah, fed by the Stok Kangri Glacier, at 36 cusecs, equivalent to approximately 90 million litres of water each day. They then constructed two channels to divert 80 million litres into the existing Igoo-Phey Irrigation Canal, increasing its total flow from 50 to nearly 90 cusecs.
The increased water supply ensures a daily flow to the 12 villages that rely on the Igoo-Phey Canal, a change from the previous restrictive schedule due to limited water. The remaining 10 million litres of glacial water were diverted into a separate dry canal at Chuchot, bringing irrigation to farmland in that area.
Officials report the project reduced the amount of glacial water flowing into the Indus River to zero within two days, and they plan to use this method for water management throughout Ladakh.
