THENI
Cooperation Minister I. Periasami released water for irrigation from Vaigai dam near here on Wednesday.
Flanked by Ministers K.R. Periakaruppan and P. Moorthi, Collectors K.V. Muralidharan (Theni), S Visagan (Dindigul), S. Aneesh Shekhar (Madurai) and P. Madhusudan Reddy (Sivaganga), Mr Periasami said that the government, after taking over on May 7 under the leadership of M.K. Stalin, had for the first time in 14 years, released water from the Mulla Periyar dam on June 1 for the farmers’ benefit.
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Likewise, the Vaigai dam would release 1,130 cusecs of water for the next 120 days, which would benefit 53 acres in Nilakottai in Dindigul district, Vadipatti (5697 acres), Madurai North (24,811) and Melur (48,963) in Madurai district, Tirupathur (478) and Sivaganga (5561) in Sivaganga district. Apart from this, water released on the Thirumangalam Main Canal would benefit 19,439 acres of land covering Vadipatti, Usilampatti, Thirumangalam and Peraiyur in Madurai district, thus totalling 1.05 lakh acres of land.
The Minister said that fertiliser stocks were sufficiently available at all the approved and designated shops. Farmers should judiciously use the water, he appealed.
The MLAs, including A. Maharajan, K.S. Saravanakumar, A. Venkatesan and M. Boominathan, PWD executive engineers M. Sugumar and V. Sugumaran and other officials were present.
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Even as the three Ministers and senior officers from the four districts arrived at Vaigai dam and were about to open the sluices, honeybees from the groove in the vicinity were in the air and started targeting the guests. Many among them ran away or attempted to chase the honeybees.
Within about a few seconds, the honeybees stung many persons assembled there. For some, the hands and other parts around their faces and necks had turned red or swelling and itching.
Realising the emergency, when the VVIPs also managed to leave in a huff, they could not leave swiftly as the exit point was narrow. The personal security officers of the Ministers were also helpless for some time.
In the bee-hit, officials said that two Collectors and a few police officers had painful moments. As the Ministers left the venue abruptly, the remaining sluices were lifted after an hour by the PWD engineers, the officials added.