NAGAPATTINAM: Pointing to a delay in taking up samba and thaladi cultivation in the region this time and complaining of inadequate water supply, farmers in the coastal delta districts of Nagapattinam and Mayiladuthurai seek the immediate release of Cauvery water from the Mettur dam to save their seasonal crop that they said is at the risk of withering. The dam supply must continue at least till the end of February, they said.
According to agriculture and farmers welfare department officials, unseasonal rains last year damaged kuruvai crop, delaying samba and thaladi cultivation in Nagapattinam and Mayiladuthurai. After Cyclone Ditwah-induced rains, farmers in the region whose samba and thaladi crops took a hit tried out another iteration of cultivation in mid-December.
With the seasonal crops taking roughly 120 days to mature, they are roughly 40-50 days old now. The cultivation covers 29,450 hectares in Nagapattinam and 37,400 hectares in Mayiladuthurai, officials said. Sivakumar from Palayur said he lost three acres of samba and thaladi crops to cyclone-induced flooding. His said his fields remained waterlogged for 25 days. “In the rain, all my crops were lost. As all the other farmers tried their hand at another iteration of cultivation, I, too, followed,” he said.
With the Mettur dam release for irrigation in the delta region stopped on January 28 this year, farmers said they are desperately pumping the little water available in ponds, canals and small waterbodies using diesel motors. S R Tamilselvan of the Tamil Nadu farmers’ protection association said, “We have spent up to `30,000 per acre on cultivation and fear total crop loss if (Mettur) water is not released immediately. The situation threatens our livelihoods and could push many families into debt.”
When enquired, a senior agriculture official told TNIE that Thanjavur, Tiruvarur, Mayiladuthurai and Nagapattinam have submitted a proposal to the water resources department (WRD) seeking adequate Mettur dam water release till end of March.