Tamil Nadu: At least 160 TMC required for Samba season, say farmers
According to the farmers, at least 1.75 TMC water is needed each day for the commencement of samba cultivation activities
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TIRUCHY: With at least 160 TMC water required for the entire season of Samba, the present share of water is very minimal, noted the Delta farmers, appealing to the government to promote compulsory crop insurance in view of damages rendered by water woes in the tail-end areas.
According to the farmers, at least 1.75 TMC water is needed each day for the commencement of samba cultivation activities. Out of the total 14 lakh acres of Samba schedule, Tiruvarur district covers 3 lakh acres, while Nagapattinam covers 2.55 lakh acres, Thanjavur covers 2.62 lakh acres, Tiruchy covers 1.50 lakh acres, and Pudukkottai CMP (Cauvery Mettur Project) area covers 27,500 acres of land. Besides this, ‘Thaladi’ cultivation has been undertaken in an area of 3 lakh acres in the entire Delta region.
“While 160 TMC water is required for the entire samba season, there will be a deficiency of at least 40 TMC despite the predicted Northeast Monsoon rains, which would fetch between 60 and 70 TMC water," said Swamimalai Sundara Vimalnathan, the secretary of Cauvery Farmers Protection Association.
He urged the central committee to look into the storage of water in all the water bodies in Karnataka. “The Committee accounts only the water stored in reservoirs, but Karnataka had stored water in the water bodies adjacent to the reservoirs after undertaking the water bodies development project. Thus, the committee should take details of those additional storage too into account,” Vimalnathan stressed.
