CUMBUM
Water level rose by one foot to reach 117.70 feet mark in Periyar dam on Wednesday, thanks to heavy inflow into the dam following sharp showers in the catchment areas and moderate rain at the dam site.
Intermittent showers cheered paddy growers in the district. Farm activities have been going on in full swing for the second crop in the double-cropping areas of Cumbum valley for the past one week.
Several farmers in Gudalur, Theni and Uthamapalayam have raised paddy seedlings for transplantation. Levelling of fields and ploughing are also picking up in several places.
If the trend of heavy inflow and restricted discharge (225 cusecs) continued, storage in Periyar dam would improve substantially, said farmers.
Despite steady increase in storage level, PWD officials are waiting for improvement in storage position in Vaigai dam. They will release water from Periyar dam when the combined credit crosses 4,000 mcft.
Comfortable storage in both dams is necessary to maintain water supply to the entire valley. The officials have decided to wait till September-end to release water for irrigation of the second crop.
Vaigai dam is receiving good inflow, thanks to heavy rain in Varusha Nadu, Theni and Bodi areas. With no agricultural activities in southern districts, discharge from Vaigai dam is restricted to 40 cusecs. Water level stood at 74.12 feet in Sothuparai dam, 33.3 ft in Manjalar dam and 20.95 ft in Shanmuganadhi dam.
