Karnataka farmer who dug tunnels to tap water in novel way to create lush green farm gets Padma Shri
Even though unlettered, 77-year-old Mahalinga Naik, through sheer girt and hard work has changed the look of a barren piece of land into a green farm located in Kepu village which is 50 kilometres from Mangaluru, Karnataka. Naik has been chosen for the third highest civilian award, Padma Shri this year and on being informed about it was happy and recalled Mahabala Bhat, from whom he had received this barren land in the 1970s. Naik worked as a labourer plucking coconuts and areca nuts in areas in and around Adyanadka, when he fell down and spent a lot of money on treatment. In 1978 he received this barren parcel of land but found that there was no water available nearby. Since digging a well was not possible for him, he resorted to the age-old method of digging tunnels which are horizontal in the hillocks and get supply of water much to the amusement of villagers. Known as the suranga method, the tunnels go deep into laterite rocks which are hard to reach groundwater, which then flows