NAGAPATTINAM: MDMK general secretary Vaiko on Thursday warned voters that the Cauvery delta would turn arid if the BJP-AIADMK combine is elected to power.
Campaigning for CPI’s M Selvarasu, he said, “We want the delta to be declared as protected agricultural zone, but all that we hear is that it is set to become a petrochemical hub. The State has gifted thousands of hectares of fertile land to hydrocarbon projects and farmers are in danger.”
He said the Centre had given the approval to Karnataka to conduct a feasibility study for a new dam in Megadatu. If the project begins, Cauvery water would not flow into Tamil Nadu, he warned. “Farmers will carry begging bowls, losing both water and land. The delta region would become a big begging bowl after being reduced from a rice bowl, and farmers would be the ones carrying it.”