Chennai, Aug 7 The extensive renovation and modernisation of the Lower Bhavani Project (LBP) Canal, a lifeline for farmers in Erode, Tiruppur, and Karur districts, has been fully completed, according to senior Water Resources Department (WRD) officials.
The 200-km-long canal, which irrigates over 2,07,000 acres of agricultural land, underwent a comprehensive overhaul aimed at strengthening its structure and improving water-carrying efficiency.
The works, which began in 2021, covered both the main canal and its distribution network.
A senior WRD official said that the project involved building head sluices and direct sluices at a total of 523 points — 114 along the main canal and 409 on the distribution canals.
“To prevent erosion and improve stability, protection walls and slope walls have been built along 35 km of the main canal and 116.52 km of the distribution canals,” the official said.
In addition, 10 bridges along the main canal have been either newly-constructed or renovated.
The project also included the construction of 129 drainage culverts, nine aqueducts, three aqueduct-cum-outlets, a canal syphon, and a regulator.
On the distribution canals, regulators have been installed at 22 locations to control water flow.
Drops — structures to manage changes in canal bed level — have been set up at 450 points, and 22 road pipe culverts have been built to facilitate transport and access.
P. Thirumoorthy, Executive Engineer of LBP, said that one of the key issues addressed during the renovation was the leakage at the 13.5th mile of the main canal.
“This leakage was fixed, following which the release from the Lower Bhavani Dam into the LBP Canal was increased to 1,500 cusecs,” he said.
The LBP Canal, commissioned in 1956, has been a critical irrigation source for decades, but ageing infrastructure and seepage had been affecting efficiency in recent years.
Officials said the modernisation works not only restore the canal to optimal condition but also incorporate measures to extend its lifespan and ensure steady water supply for farming communities.
The WRD expects that the renovated canal will significantly improve water distribution, reduce wastage, and boost agricultural productivity in the three districts during the coming irrigation seasons.
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