Farmers urge TN govt to delay regulated irrigation as low storage threatens standing crops

Chennai, Nov 16 (IANS) Farmers under the Periyar–Vaigai Thirumangalam Main Canal Water Users’ Federation have urged Tamil Nadu’s Water Resources Department (WRD) to postpone the commencement of regulated irrigation by at least a month, warning that an early schedule could lead to large-scale crop loss across the ayacut.

In a petition submitted to the WRD, federation leader M.P. Raman said water was released into the Melur and Thirumangalam main canals for the current irrigation season on September 18.

However, poor rainfall since then has left most irrigation tanks at less than 30 per cent storage, a sharp drop from the levels typically seen at this point in the monsoon.

Under normal conditions, tanks across the system reach over 75 per cent storage within 45 days of water release. But this year, the federation said, a combination of weak monsoon inflows and damage to several direct irrigation structures has severely hampered the flow of water into tanks.

Many structures along the main canal have not been repaired in time for the season, resulting in tanks receiving only minimal inflow.

The situation is especially severe along the Thirumangalam main extension canal, where several tanks remain completely dry, farmers said.

As a result, tail-end fields are still in the midst of transplantation, even as the WRD prepares to enforce regulated irrigation.

If the regulation proceeds as per the current schedule, the federation warned that standing crops, already stressed by inadequate soil moisture, could suffer irreversible damage.

The petition requested the WRD to defer regulated irrigation by at least one month and ensure the release of additional water during this extended period to compensate for the deficit created by the weak monsoon and poor storage.

The farmers also noted that the Periyar dam currently holds more than 10,000 million cubic feet of water, indicating sufficient reserves to support extended irrigation.

With the northeast monsoon expected to continue through December, the federation said further inflows into the Periyar–Vaigai system are likely, making it feasible to maintain a continuous water supply for up to 120 days.

Farmers argued that postponing regulated irrigation and ensuring steady releases would not only stabilise the standing crop but also prevent severe productivity losses across thousands of acres.

They urged the WRD to consider ground realities and adopt a flexible schedule to safeguard the livelihoods of farmers in the region.

–IANS

aal/svn