Farmers abstracting river water for irrigation during the ongoing dry spell will be arrested, Central regional commissioner Wilfred Nyagwanga has warned.
Nyagwanga said they had information that some farmers who practise commercial agriculture have tapped into the local rivers, leading to the drying up of water sources.
He said they will not allow a few individuals to enrich themselves at the expense of the majority downstream.
The administrator spoke after touring Thika town to monitor the progress of the Huduma Namba registration on Wednesday. He said he will ensure the water flow in the rivers is normalised to help residents downstream access water for domestic use.
Nyagwanga said the government will ensure availability of water for domestic use during this dry period and called on residents to report to authorities, areas, where farmers have tapped river water into their farms for action to be taken.
He said major rivers like Thika, Chania and Sagana should have constant water flow.
“Some weeks back, the water levels at Chania and Thika rivers were considerably high. However, as we speak, the two rivers and Sagana are drying up. We suspect some individuals have tapped the waters to irrigate their farms,” he said.
This comes as residents from the dry areas of Thika East subcounty, which border Machakos and Murang'a’a counties, complained of dry rivers.
They claimed the rivers have few water access points which are drying up by the day, forcing them to walk several kilometres to access them.
“The rivers were flowing regularly some weeks ago and we were able to access water without challenges. However, they are drying up each passing day. We are now forced to walk several kilometres in search of water for domestic use. Our livestock too are suffering,” Dominic Waita, a Kilimambogo resident, said.
Meanwhile, majority of residents who had already prepared their farms for the planting season are distressed following delayed rains amid fears that the coming few months might be dry.
“Having dry rivers and streams, and empty granaries will be a disaster. Already, we are hunger-stricken due to low yields in the last harvest. We had done our part by preparing our farms and some have even planted seeds waiting for the rains. We only hope it rains soon,” Mary Kinuthia said.
(Edited by R.Wamochie)
