Farmers in the tail-end areas of Lower Bhavani Project Canal are either clearing the fields or letting the crops wither away by themselves due to dry conditions.
Release of water from Bhavani Sagar reservoir into LBP canal for special wetting has meant precious little for farmers in Kodumudi-Sivagiri belt towards the tail-end of LBP canal.
Though 2,600 cusecs were released into the canal for a fortnight until Saturday, the extent of water was hardly sufficient to flow to the benefit of farmers in the downstream.
Several hundreds of acres with turmeric and sugarcane crops are going dry and there are instances of farmers opting for harvest of pre-mature maize crops.
Farmers say that in a distress situation, it makes sense to salvage whatever is possible from the maize crops for use as animal fodder.
The level at the reservoir is also not encouraging.
The depth is only 44.21 feet.
There is just 3.01 tmc water and the inflow is also meagre at 155 cusecs against outflow of 205 cusecs for meeting drinking needs: 200 into Bhavani river and five cusecs into LBP canal.
