Karnataka to launch statewide drive to make state free of unsafe open borewells

Bengaluru, Karnataka will launch a statewide campaign to identify and safely close failed, abandoned and unsafe open borewells, Minor Irrigation Minister Ajay Dharam Singh said on Tuesday.

The 'Borewell Suraksha Abhiyan' will initially focus on failed and defunct borewells drilled under the Minor Irrigation Department, with the campaign later to be expanded to borewells under other government departments and those located in public places.

Singh has directed the Ground Water Development Directorate to prepare a comprehensive action plan covering identification, verification, safe closure, inter-departmental coordination and monitoring of such borewells across the state.

"Not a single open borewell should be allowed to become a threat to a child's life. In the first phase, we will verify all failed and defunct borewells drilled under the Minor Irrigation Department and ensure that every unsafe borewell is properly secured and closed," the minister said, according to a release.

The department noted that while legal and monitoring provisions are already in place following Supreme Court directions, some borewells, particularly those not reflected in official records or drilled without adequate reporting, could have remained inadequately secured.

In the second phase, the campaign will be extended in coordination with other government departments, local bodies and agencies to identify and secure unsafe borewells in public places and other areas.

The government is also exploring a WhatsApp number and web-based reporting mechanism through which citizens can report suspected unsafe borewells by sharing photographs and location details.

The proposed system could also facilitate geo-tagging and tracking of complaints from reporting and verification to closure, it said.

"Our objective is not limited to checking borewells already available in departmental records. We must also identify those that may have escaped official attention and ensure that they are made safe. Our goal is to move towards an 'Open Borewell-Free Karnataka'," Singh said.

The minister has directed Minor Irrigation and Ground Water Development Department Secretary Rajesh Amminabhavi and officials of the Ground Water Development Directorate to prepare the detailed implementation framework for the campaign.

This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.