CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu received 292.58 thousand million cubic feet (tmcft) of Cauvery water from Karnataka from June 2024 to April 10 this year, far exceeding the 173.08 tmcft directed by the Supreme Court for a water year (June to May). This means the state got an excess of 119.49 tmcft in 10 months of the current water year against 78.39 tmcft realised during the last water year (2023-24).
Good inflow and increased water levels have brought the much-needed relief to farmers in the Cauvery delta region. As of Monday, water level in the Stanley reservoir (Mettur) stood at 74.945 tmcft, which is around 80.18% of its full capacity of 93.470 tmcft.
With comfortable storage, the state government is planning to release water from Mettur dam in June, as per the regular schedule, for irrigation.
Farmers, however, have urged the authorities to create better storage facilities in and around the Stanley reservoir to store water when inflow is higher than usual. G Ajeethan, technical secretary of the Consortium of Indian Farmers Associations, told TNIE, “We cannot call this a good or bad year. Karnataka received good rain during the monsoon.
Since they lacked storage facility, they released the surplus water. Karnataka is releasing water on a monthly basis as per the Supreme Court’s order. But Tamil Nadu farmers have been demanding daily release. Karnataka has no right to store Cauvery water, but TN government has not taken any action on this.”
V Ravichandran, director of Global Farmers Network, an NGO, said cultivation of paddy and cotton had taken a hit in several parts of the state due to insufficient water shortage and poor soil quality. But, with adequate storage now, farmers in the Cauvery delta region are getting ready for the Kuruvai season.
Ravichandran also stressed the need to spread awareness among farmers about rainwater harvesting and groundwater recharge. “This is the right time to educate them. It will benefit those living in the tail-end areas of the delta,” he added. Ravichandran also appealed to the state government to ensure the release of Cauvery water for farmers in the tail-end regions.
Meanwhile, a senior official from the Water Resources Department (WRD), on condition of anonymity, told TNIE that proposals have been submitted to the state government to desilt the Mettur dam and restore its original storage capacity.
“With help from private consultants, WRD has estimated that desilting can help store an additional 30 tmcft over the next five years. But the files are still pending,” the official said. The government is planning to carry out the desilting works through tenders. WRD will prepare a detailed project report once it gets the approval, the official added.