DHARMAPURI: In a sign of likely water scarcity in Dharmapuri during summer the inflow into the Cauvery river at Hogenakkal has decreased to a mere 300 cubic foot per second or cusecs. Public, including farmers, are worried about an impending drinking water shortage in the district. However, TWAD officials allayed the concerns and assured in no way water supply would be hindered.
Farmers said that due to the deficit rainfall in 2023 the water level in most groundwater sources in rural Dharmapuri are slowly declining and hence people are increasingly concerned about drinking water shortage in the district.
R Selvaraj, a farmer from Nallampalli, told TNIE, “It is felt the supply from the Hogenakkal Drinking Water and Fluorosis Mitigation project (HDWFMP) will not be able to meet the water needs in the upcoming months. The water inflow at Hogenakkal has reduced. If the water levels plummet, will TWAD be able to provide water? This is the concern for many in the district.”
Over the past few days, several minor protests have occurred in rural areas across Dharmapuri district with people staging road roko demanding the regulation of supply from the Hogenakkal project.
“As per data Dharmapuri district usually receives about 930 mm of rainfall, but in 2023 we had received only about 710 mm of rainfall. So most water bodies are impacted,” Selvaraj added.
J Prathapan, District Secretary of the Tamil Nadu Agriculturist Labourers Association, said, “Dharmapuri has many large and small water bodies. About 20 large water bodies are under the PWD(WRO) and over 630 smaller water bodies are under the control of the DRDA. But most of these are poorly maintained and groundwater recharge is hindered.
This coupled with the poor rainfall last year has left many water bodies parched. We urge the administration to take steps to ensure enough water supply.” TWAD officials said, “There is no cause for concern and water supply of over 65 million litre per day will be provided to the district as usual. The pumps at the HDWFMP will be able to pump water even if water levels reach 100 mm.”