CHENNAI: Five thousand tanks in 66 sub-basins in the State will undergo repair and renovation under the proposed World Bank’s Second Tamil Nadu Irrigated Agriculture Modernization and Water-Bodies Restoration and Management (IAMWARM) project.
Reliable sources in the Water Resources Department told Express that the project would cost around Rs 2,950 crore and will be implemented over a period of six years.
The project is aimed at increasing the capacity of the water bodies to help farming and simultaneously reducing the possibilities of flooding. Some of the major districts to be covered are Chennai, Coimbatore and Madurai.
The State has a total of 127 sub-basins. Under the first IAMWARM project, 61 sub basins were covered in a period of six years (2007-2013) in four phases with Water Resources Organization as the nodal agency. According to a Water Resources Department official, rehabilitation of 2,831 tanks in 61 sub-basins in 26 districts were completed. The first IAMWARM project’s focus was to support investment in improving irrigation service delivery, including adoption of modern water-saving irrigation technologies and agricultural practices besides agricultural intensification and diversification.
Meanwhile, Water Resources Department has already started initiating action in removing encroachments along the water bodies. When Express tried to contact WRD officials on what measures they are undertaking to remove encroachments along water bodies, they refused to comment.