Chennai, July 5 Amid worsening drought conditions in parts of Tiruppur district, farmers have urged authorities to release water from the Parambikulam-Aliyar Project (PAP) to the Vattamalai Dam, which supports irrigation and drinking water supply for several villages.
Located in Vellakovil, the Vattamalai Dam irrigates nearly 6,000 acres of farmland across 30 villages.
With a modest storage capacity of 268 million cubic feet (mcft), the dam has been left nearly dry this year due to poor rainfall, leaving farmers and villagers in distress.
Krishnamoorthy P.K., a farmer from Veeranampalayam, said the situation is becoming dire.
"There is no water even for drinking and cattle rearing. Our crops are withering. At the same time, due to continuous rains, PAP reservoirs are filling up. If excess water is released from PAP dams to the sea, it would be a wasted opportunity. We request that some of that water be diverted to the Vattamalai Dam to help us survive," he said.
Echoing the demand, V. Sudheer Kumar, a farmer from Kattunaickenpalayam, pointed out that water distribution under the PAP scheme has been completed up to the third zone.
"Work is underway to desilt the irrigation canals before releasing water to the fourth zone, and that may take another month. During this period, authorities should consider supplying water to Vattamalai Dam. We have already submitted a petition to the district administration," Kumar said.
Medical K. Paramasivam, Chairperson of the PAP Planning Committee, said that the Parambikulam Dam, a key reservoir in the PAP network, has not yet reached its full storage capacity.
“It still requires an additional three thousand million cubic feet (tmc) of water. As of now, we cannot release water to Vattamalai Dam," Paramasivam said.
He noted that existing government regulations require that priority be given to the Uppar Dam before any release to Vattamalai.
"If there is heavy rainfall in the coming days and if the release to the fourth zone is delayed due to ongoing dredging, then water could be sent first to the Uppar Dam and subsequently to Vattamalai. The final decision will be made after further review and inter-departmental consultations," he said.
Farmers, meanwhile, remain hopeful that timely action will avert further damage to their crops and livelihoods.
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