TIRUPPUR/ERODE: Even as a few dams have been opened in the state in the last few days following ample rain in their catchment areas several water bodies which are relied upon by farmers are dry. A section of the farmers mull a protest as water has eluded several ponds under the Athikadavu-Avinashi project despite the opening of the Lower Bhavani Dam (Bhavani Sagar Dam) the other day.
"Many water bodies in the village panchayats, including Nambiyampalayam, Thekkalur, Karuvalur, Pudupalayam, Uppilipalayam, and Kittampalam, are dry," stated S Thangamuthu, a farmer and coordinator of the Athikadavu-Avinashi Project Agitation Committee, from Thekkalur.
"After many decades of struggle, the Athikadavu-Avinashi project came into operation last year. However, in many places, water bodies are still not receiving enough water. In some places, water is not reaching the ponds," he added.
"We complained to the officials several times regarding this. But no action has been taken. At present, excess water from the Bhavani Sagar Dam has been released into the river. About 16,700 cusecs of excess water was released on Monday. Even then, there is no water supply to the ponds in our area. We face drought even though the project is operational. We are preparing to mobilise farmers in this regard and launch a series of protests soon."
K Balraj, a farmer of Cheyur village, said, "Water bodies in major cities and villages are filled by this scheme. But authorities are not concerned about water bodies in remote villages. Many water bodies in our area are without sufficient water. Authorities are biased in water distribution. This will definitely bring disrepute to the government among farmers and the public."
However, a senior official of the Water Resources Department (WRD) for the Athikadavu-Avinashi project (Avinashi Division) told TNIE that these issues will be resolved in a few days.
"There are 593 water bodies under the Avinashi division and 452 water bodies under the Perundurai division in the project. Recently, due to the Avinashi - Mettupalayam road expansion works, our project lines were damaged at nine locations. Due to this, water supply to water bodies was disrupted in some places. Sometimes damage at the starting points in the lines causes the pump to shut down completely. These issues will be resolved in a few days."
"Water has reached all water bodies under this project. In the last financial year, 1330 mcft of surplus water was taken from the Bhavani River for this project. In the current financial year, water has been supplied to 387 water bodies in Avinashi division so far," the official added.
"Even though the surplus water has been released from the dam, there are some issues in pumping water from the river. There is a slowdown in pumping as the water is flooded with hyacinths," another senior official from the Perundurai division said.
The Athikadavu-Avinashi project envisages diversion of surplus water of the Bhavani River to fill 1,045 water bodies and irrigate 24,468 acres of farm land in Erode, Tiruppur, and Coimbatore districts. The project was operationalised in August 2024.
Cauvery inflow at 1.25 lakh cusecs
Dharmapuri: The water inflow levels in the Cauvery reached 1.25 lakh cusecs near Hogenakkal on Monday due to the abrupt release of water from the Kabini and KSR dams in Karnataka, said officials in the Central Water Commission in Dharmapuri. The inflow levels may increase in the coming days, they added.