Farmer working in a watermelon field, Naya Wathoda village, Amravati district.
Naya Wathoda is one of roughly 300 villages that receive irrigation from the Upper Wardha dam. Irrigation has allowed farmers to increase their yield, raising income as well as providing them with food. However, the government of Maharashtra recently sanctioned the diversion of irrigation water from the Upper Wardha dam to thermal power plants in Amravati instead.