Nagarjunasagar Canal Irrigation Command Area of Guntur

The Nagarjunasagar Left Bank Canal running through Guntur district is one of the longest irrigation canals in India, carrying water from the Nagarjunasagar reservoir 400 km through Guntur and other districts to irrigate 15 lakh acres of agricultural land. The canal transformed Guntur's agricultural economy — enabling double cropping of paddy where previously only dry crops were grown in the canal command area. The canal management involves intricate scheduling of water releases by the AP Irrigation Department, allocating water to different distributary systems on a rotational basis. Traditional water user associations (VWSCs) manage the tail-end distributary water distribution, a critical function in ensuring equitable water access between head and tail-reach farmers.