JOIN US Heavy rain lashed southern and western parts of Tamil Nadu since Tuesday night, bringing good inflow in to several reservoirs including the Mettur Dam.
Water Resources Department officials told DH on Thursday that the inflow rose to 1,800 cusecs due to heavy rain in the catchment area of river Cauvery in Karnataka.
Accordingly, the water level in the Mettur reservoir rose to 43 feet compared to 41 feet on Monday last. “The water level is expected to touch 50 feet in the next few days if the southwest monsoon further intensifies” a senior officials from PWD water resources department said.
However, the official said that the dam could be opened for Delta farmers for Kuruvai cultivation only when the water level in the dam is about 90-feet level.
“If Karnataka government releases 10 TMC water in June as per the final order of the Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal, the water level will reach more than 60 feet and further intensification of rain will also contribute further inflow in to Mettur” the official pointed out.
Delta areas such as Thanjavur, Tiruvarur, Nagapattinam and some parts of Salem, which produces 25 lakh tonnes of paddy every year with Kuruvai and Samba cultivation done in about 20 lakh acres, also received good rainfall in the past week.
As the Tamil Nadu government is not in a position to open the shutters of the Mettur dam on the schedule date of June 12, the AIADMK government recently came out with Rs 55-crore package for Delta farmers for taking up Kuruvai cultivation in six districts besides providing 12-hour continuous power.