COIMBATORE/CHENNAI/TIRUCHY: Chief Minister MK Stalin on Tuesday opened the sluice gates of Mettur reservoir to release Cauvery water for kuruvai cultivation in delta districts. This is the first time since Independence that water is released from the reservoir in May for irrigation. Also, this is the second time since 1947 that water is released ahead of the customary date of June 12 three years in a row.
According to an official in the Public Works Department (PWD-water resources), the reservoir has been receiving good inflow owing to the rain in its catchments. Water level is expected to touch the dam’s full capacity of 120 feet soon. As of 8 am on Tuesday, the water level stood at 117.760 feet. A total of 125 tmcft (thousand million cubic feet) will be released till September 15.
Of this, 93.860 tmcft would be released to irrigate 4,91,200 acres across Namakkal, Karur, Tiruchy, Thanjavur, Thiruvarur, Nagapattinam and Mayiladuthurai districts and 5.88 tmcft for 30,800 acres in Cuddalore and Ariyalur districts. A total of 5.22 lakh acres are likely to get irrigated for kuruvai cultivation. Besides, 460 megawatt of electricity will be produced through the hydel stations in Mettur.
Officials said water flow on Tuesday was at a rate of 3,000 cusec. The volume would gradually be increased to 10,000-16,000 cusec in June and 18,000 cusec in August. To enable samba and thalady cultivation in 12.1 lakh acres, 108.50 tmcft will be released from September 15 to January 28, 2023.
Water Resource Minister Durai Murugan, Minister for Municipal Administration KN Nehru, Transport Minister SS Sivasankar, MPs, MLAs, and officials were present during the water release.
Farmers upbeat
AKR Ravichander, a farmer from Ammayagaram village in Thanjavur, welcomed the advance release of the water. Whenever water was released on June 12 or later, harvest of kuruvai paddy was delayed and, often, affected by the onset of the northeast monsoon in October. This made selling paddy difficult as moisture content in it would be higher than the prescribed 17%.
With an early release of water, kuruvai harvest could be advanced before the rains. Moreover, farmers could advance samba paddy cultivation as well (September-October) and this would reduce the chances of pest attacks. “We can reduce the use of pesticides also,” Ravichander added. Seconding Ravichander, E Natarajan, a farmer from Illupur from Nagapattinam, said they would now have enough time to prepare the field for samba cultivation.
Desilting nearing completion
Later, Durai Murugan said in a press statement that 82% of desilting works across Cauvery delta districts have been completed and the remaining works would be over before water from the Mettur dam reaches irrigation canals. He said 4,047 km of the 4,964 km irrigation network have been desilted. Work is taken up in canals and outlets at a speed of 210 km a day using additional machinery.
Meanwhile, AIADMK coordinator O Panneerselvam said in a statement that the early release of water from the Mettur dam would affect the ongoing construction works along the Cauvery and the Vennar and the canals and sub-canals of the Grand Anicut.
This will lead to a lot of Mettur water going waste. The Chief Minister should consult all stakeholders on this issue and take steps to prevent wastage of water.
Moreover, the construction of check dams on Vennar, Cauvery, and Kudamurutti and the work at Adappanpallam lower bridge are yet to be over. “Farmers believe that releasing water from the Grand Anicut on May 26-27 would result in breaches (on the check dams) and the water would be wasted.
Also, contractors would be forced to complete the works in a hurry. As such, the government should adopt appropriate water management techniques to store the water being released from the Mettur dam,” Panneerselvam said.