GOs on Cauvery check dams scrapped: EPS

TIRUCHY: Leader of Opposition Party Edappadi K Palaniswami addressing members of farmers’ association here on Monday said that the previous AIADMK Government created Water Management Committee comprising experts and senior engineers and planned for four check dams across the Cauvery and released the GO but the DMK, after forming government cancelled the them abruptly.

Interacting with the farmers and MSME representatives in Tiruchy, Edappadi Palaniswami said that the AIADMK government had initially identified 14,000 lakes, 6,000 tanks for desilting. Orders for desilt work was given to the farmers free of cost, he added.

The AIADMK government had also drafted a project for the construction of check dams from Mettur up to the place where the Cauvery joins the sea. “We planned for four check dams across the Cauvery so that the water may not flow waste into the sea. We had indeed issued a GO too. But the DMK cancelled the GOs after assuming power. We planned several constructive projects for the farming community but the DMK regime does not care about the farmers,” he alleged.

The AIADMK general secretary said that the kudimaramathu works were a flagship programme of the AIADMK government and this has helped the storage capacity of water bodies across the State. “The storage of water increased, which has helped recharge of ground water. All credit goes to the the kudimaramathu scheme we executed,” Palaniswami said.

Meanwhile, Palaniswami added that the previous AIADMK government had allocated a funds of Rs 48 crore for the purchase of stimulator fertilizers through which the farmers could get high yield. Similarly, ethanol was extracted from maize and this has increased the price of maize from Rs 13 to 25 per kg. He added that this had a great impact on the profits earned by the farmers during the previous AIADMK government.

The farmer leaders who met him at the event placed their demands, including Cauvery-Ayyaru and Cauvery-Gundar linking projects. They also urged to control the increase of agriculture input costs, extension of MSP of Rs 3,400 per quintal of paddy and Rs 4,500 per tonne of sugarcane, Rs 50 per litre price for cow milk.