TIRUPPUR: Farmers in several villages in Udumalaipet taluk are buying water to save coconut saplings as the region did not receive enough rain during the NE monsoon, as a result of which ground water is depleting.
Horticulture department officials have advised them to implement drip irrigation system and make the most of the water available.
K Thangavel, a farmer in Mukudu Jallipatti village said, “Two years ago, I planted coconut saplings on three acres of land. I spent more than Rs one lakh for sowing, tilling and other works. Around 250 coconut saplings, aged two, are currently on the verge of wilitng as two bore wells and open wells in my farmland have gone dry. For the last six months, I am buying water once in a week at the rate of Rs 800 per tanker of 2,500 litre capacity. With summer beginning, the situation could worsen. I planted traditional variety and the saplings need at least four more years to bear nuts.”
Like Thangavel, hundreds of farmers are affected by the poor rainfall. Jallipatti village panchayat president C Saminathan said, “ Coconut cultivation is the primary occupation in Udumalaipet and Madathukulam taluks. Around 60 acres (Kodaganallur village), 40 acres (Govindapuram), 100 acres (Jallipatti) are affected. Farmers fear the worst as summer has started.”
Tamil Nadu farmers protection association (Udumalaipet) secretary A Vijayasekaran said, “Ground water level is going doing in Valavadi, Velasaupattu, Kallipalayam, Panna Kinaru villages. Most farmers have sunk bore wells at 300 feet depth, and some are now digging up to 2,000 feet. But there is no guarantee there will be water in that depth. So, they have started to buy water every week instead of spending lakhs of rupees on sinking borewell.”
An official from the agriculture department (Tiruppur) said, “There wasn’t any rain for the past several months, as a result of which storage level in all dams in Western Ghats has dropped significantly. We have advised coconut farmers to implement drip irrigation systems to conserve losses. We will be discussing with revenue department to assess the loss for future compensation”