TIRUVARUR: Chief Minister MK Stalin on Monday inspected the Odampokki river, which is being cleared of water hyacinth at a cost of Rs 10 lakh, to facilitate the free flow of water to irrigate 29,835 acres of farmlands in Tiruvarur and Nagapattinam districts.
The work on a 3.7-km stretch of the waterbody was taken up following a request put forth to the CM by farmers when he visited the area on June 9 as part of his inspection of canal desilting works in Cauvery delta districts ahead of Mettur dam water release.
Earlier in the day the CM also inspected Kalaignar Kottam, a memorial built for former chief minister M Karunanidhi at Kattur, which will be inaugurated on Tuesday by Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.
Meanwhile, officials said a total of Rs 5 crore has been allocated for removing water hyacinths from rivers and canals in Tiruvarur and Nagapattinam districts. In the first phase, the invasive species in the rivers and canals of Cauvery and Vennaru sub-basins, which irrigate 5.09 lakh acres in Tiruvarur and Nagapattinam, are being removed, they added.
Ministers KN Nehru and TRB Rajaa, MP T R Baalu, Special representative of Tamil Nadu in Delhi AKS Vijayan and TAHDCO chairman U Mathivanan accompanied the chief minister.
