COIMBATORE: As many as 20,000-odd farmers in Dharapuram taluk in Tirupur district have threatened to boycott the general elections if their long-standing demand for releasing water into Upparu dam for irrigation was not met.
Speaking to Express Muruganandam, coordinator for Upparu dam joint action committee said that the farmers in Dharapuram taluk, comprising of 60 villages in 6 panchayats who are solely dependent on Upparu dam water for irrigation, have been left high and dry by the State government.
The Upparu reservoir was constructed across Upparu river in 1965 and initially benefitted farmers in the region with heavy water flow from rains and additional water released from Parambikulam Aliyar Project (PAP). In 1996, the farmers started to experience water shortage as PAP farmers objected to water being released to Upparu reservoir. Muruganandam said that there was acute water shortage in 1997 and farming activity came to a standstill as the reservoir was the main irrigation source for farmers in Dharapuram.
Agitated over the non-release of water from PAP, several farmers associations had been conducting a series of protests since 2001. In 2005, the farmers handed over their voter ID cards to Dharapuram RDO in protest against the inaction of the State government to help them.
The issue assumed political significance in 2006 when MLAs from Pongalur and Vellakoil constituencies raised the issue in the Assembly, seeking a minimum release of water to the Upparu reservoir. In 2008, the farmers association represented their demands to the government which also failed to evoke any positive result.
With acute water shortage in Dharapuram area, Muruganandam said as many as 70,000 coconut crops have withered and farmers are in dire straits over their sole means of livelihood.
Many had migrated to nearby Tirupur in search of employment Added to this, Dharapuram is now facing an acute drinking water shortage, Muruganandam said and added that the farmers associations had made several attempts to get an audience with PWD Minister Durai Murugan. But, he showed no interest in addressing their grievances.
In this scenario, the farmers associations in Dharapuram have resolved to boycott the polls as they have little other option.