Amidst the showering of flower petals, the sluices of the Kalingarayanpalayam check dam were opened at 8.30 a.m. on Sunday to discharge a massive sheet of water into the Kalingarayan Canal for irrigation.
Collector R. Sudalaikannan, accompanied by senior officials, opened the sluices to release water into the channel for the irrigation of over 17,000 acres of lands in different parts of the district.
Repair
The district administration was not able to release water into the channel on the customary opening date of June 16 this year as the Public Works Department had taken up repair and maintenance works in the 56-and-a-half mile long irrigation channel connecting River Bhavani with River Noyyal.
Repairs were carried out to a large number of shutters in the channel and a few bridges were also constructed across the channel.
The National Bank for Agriculture and Rural Development had sanctioned Rs. 11.64 crore for carrying out the maintenance works and to construct a parapet wall along the channel in order to prevent the flow of untreated effluents from the textile and leather processing units.
Collector R. Sudalaikannan, after opening the sluices, told reporters that it was decided to maintain the discharge of 600 cusecs of water a day for irrigation. The discharge of water would be maintained till November 15.
The Collector appealed to the farmers to utilise water judiciously.
