MADURAI
The State government has claimed before the Madras High Court Bench here that “there is no possibility of scarcity of water for drinking and irrigation in Tamil Nadu,” due to the implementation of Water Resources Consolidation Project (WRCP) from 1995 to 2004 and World Bank-funded Irrigated Agriculture Modernisation and Waterbodies Restoration and Management (IAMWARM) project from 2007 to 2015.
The submission was made in a counter-affidavit filed on behalf of the Chief Secretary and the Public Works Department (PWD) Secretary before a Division Bench of Justices K.K. Sasidharan and G.R. Swaminathan who were seized of a public interest litigation petition seeking a direction to the government to constitute a special committee for preserving all waterbodies in the State after clearing encroachments.
The counter was filed by S. Thinakaran, Engineer-in-Chief, Water Resources Department (WRD)-cum-Chief Engineer (GL) of the PWD. It claimed that 16 irrigation systems, 25 minor schemes and 620 rain-fed tanks were rehabilitated under the WRCP. Similarly, 6.69 lakh hectares of ayacut benefitted due to the implementation of the IAMWARM project in 61 sub-basins spread over 24 districts.
“Under the WRD component, rehabilitation of supply channels, anicuts and tanks, including desilting works, wherever found necessary, were carried out and standardisation and strengthening of bunds were also carried out. In addition, check dams and artificial recharge schemes were implemented and they were effectively functioning. So due to implementation of the above schemes, there is no possibility of scarcity of water for drinking and irrigation in Tamil Nadu,” it read.
Further, pointing out that waterbodies with less than 40 hectares of ayacut were maintained by Rural Development and Panchayat Raj department, the official said those with more than 40 hectares of irrigated land were under the control of the WRD, which was also maintaining 89 dams in the State. Out of the 39,202 tanks in the State, 14,098 major tanks were under the control of the WRD and the others were maintained by local bodies.
In so far as removal of encroachments from waterbodies was concerned, the engineer said action was being initiated under the Tamil Nadu Protection of Tanks and Eviction of Encroachment Act, 2007. Of the 14,098 tanks in Chennai, Coimbatore, Madurai and Tiruchi districts, 4,358 tanks had been restored fully and the rest were under various stages of eviction process, including survey work, erection of boundary stones and live fencing, he added.
