Although a majority of rain-fed tanks in Tiruchi district are yet to receive appreciable inflows, four irrigation tanks near Thuraiyur have filled up, thanks to copious inflow from catchment areas in Kolli Hills.
Only four of the 97 rain-fed tanks under the control of Ariyar division of the Public Works department in the district have filled up so far. And all the four — Jamberi, Alathudayanpatti Periya Eri, Alathudayanpatti Chinna Eri and Sirunavalur Eri — have received good inflow in recent days and filled to the brim, much to the joy of local farmers.
Jamberi is one of the biggest irrigation tanks in the district and irrigates a fertile belt where the famous seeraga samba rice is grown. “Four of the 51 tanks under Ariyar division in Thuraiyur region have surplussed now. Jamberi in Vairichettipalayam village has an ayacut area of about 1,020 acres and has a capacity to hold 72.50 million cubic feet of water. The tank gets a major portion of its flow through an inlet canal branching off from the Ayyaru flowing down the Kolli Hills,” a senior officer of the division told The Hindu .
Alathudayapatti Periya Eri, with a storage capacity of 47.55 mcft, irrigates about 325 acres. The tank is fed by a canal branching off the Ayyaru near Puliancholai. The overflows from the tank flows to Chinna Eri in the village. Chinna Eri has an ayacut of 230 acres and holds 23.25 mcft of water. The surplus water from this tank is now flowing to Reddiyarpatti tank, a panchayat union tank.
Sirunavalur tank, with a storage capacity of 32.35 mcft, irrigates about 408 acres. The surplus water now flows to Naganayakkanpatti tank. The Venkatachalapuram tank is also getting good inflow, the officer said.
Meanwhile, a majority of rain-fed tanks under the division in other parts of the district are yet to get good inflow although the district has received widespread rainfall under the southwest monsoon. Tanks in drought-prone areas such as Manapparai and Marungapuri are still dry, said another official.
