Defer regulated irrigation by a month: Madurai farmers
MADURAI: Farmers of the Periyar-Vaigai Thirumangalam Main Canal Water Users’ Federation have appealed to the Water Resources Department (WRD) to postpone regulated irrigation by at least a month to prevent crop loss, as tanks are running barely a third of their capacity and tail-end fields are still undergoing transplantation.
In a petition submitted to the WRD, farmer leader M.P. Raman of the federation stated that water was released into the Melur and Thirumangalam main canals for the current irrigation season on September 18. However, the region has received insufficient rainfall since then, leaving most irrigation tanks with less than 30% storage, far below the levels usually expected at this stage of the season.
The federation noted that under normal monsoon conditions, tanks across the ayacut achieve over 75% storage within 45 days of water release.
This year, several direct irrigation structures along the canal have been damaged, limiting the flow of water into the tanks. Tanks along the Thirumangalam main extension canal remain completely dry, it added. Warning that early enforcement of regulated irrigation would severely affect standing crops, the federation requested the WRD to defer the schedule by at least one month and provide additional water during this period to compensate for the deficit.
The petition further pointed out that the Periyar dam currently holds over 10,000 million cubic feet of water. With the northeast monsoon expected to continue through December, additional inflows are likely.
These conditions, farmers said, make it feasible to supply water continuously for up to 120 days.