KANNIYAKUMARI: Farmers in Theroor have started the cultivation of paddy after a gap of two seasons. Spanning more than 1,200 acre, Theroor is one of the important paddy cultivation areas in the district.
Vellamadam-Suchindram road separates the tank into the east and west side, which is connected with two pipelines. Farmers stopped cultivation last year citing damage to the pipe culverts, after which the State government allocated funds for replacing the damaged pipelines with two over bridges. The works, nearing completion, have instilled new hope to Theroor farmers.
"This tank is one of the biggest tanks in the district. The two pipelines, under the road, were beyond repair. It was disrupting water flow from the west to the east side of the tank. Further, we could not store the required water for irrigation.
So we stopped cultivation from last year's Kumbapoo season and this year's Kanipoo season. We are now in a position to store the required water in the tank and farmers have started cultivation by planting seeds," said Theroor Tank water users association president K Chidambaram Pillai.
It is not just farmers, but other workers involved in agriculture who are heaving a sigh of relief. 65-year-old M Selvaraj said many of the workers were unemployed during the non-cultivation period, but the scenario was different now.
A State highways department engineer said the overbridges that will replace the pipelines are worth Rs 1.32 crore and Rs 1.10 crore. "90% of the construction, which began in June, has been completed. Only the retention of the wall and approach road works are pending. In two days, water could be stored in the tank," the official added.