Let-up in rain has farmers heaving a sigh of relief

Waterbodies in many districts are brimming with water and almost all 76 system tanks under the PWD have filled up in Tiruchi

December 02, 2019 10:10 pm | Updated 10:10 pm IST - Tiruchi

Rainwater flowing across Arumbavur-A.Mettur Road in Perambalur district on Monday following heavy overnight rain.

Rainwater flowing across Arumbavur-A.Mettur Road in Perambalur district on Monday following heavy overnight rain.

Barring few places, the central districts saw a let up in the rain on Monday, bringing relief to farmers worried over continued rainfall affecting the crop.

With some parts of the region such as Jayamkondam in Ariyalur districts and parts of the delta receiving rains for four consecutive days, apprehensions were raised on possible breaches on tanks and inundation of standing crops. In most parts of the delta districts such as Tiruvarur and Thanjavur, the rain subsided on Sunday. However, parts of Ariyalur, Pudukottai, Nagapattinam, Perambalur, Tiruchi and Karur continued to get intermittent showers.

Traffic disrupted

In some places, such as in Veppanthattai taluk and Jayamkondam, the overnight rain was heavy. The Kallar in Perambalur district was in spate and heavy rain flows in the locality inundated roads and agricultural fields in places such as Arumbavur, where big and small tanks have already filled up. Rain flow from the jungle streams overflowed across the Arumbavur-A.Mettur Road, disrupting traffic in the forenoon. The rain flows receded later in the day. Thazhuthazhai and Krishnapuram in the district recorded 34 mm and 28 mm of rainfall, respectively, during the 24-hour period ending at 8.30 a.m. on Monday

Local farmers said recently transplanted paddy crop was inundated in some fields in and around Arumbavur. “Inundation of fields with crops such as tapioca and maize has been reported in a few other villages such as Maliyalipatti, Veppanthattai and A.Mettur. The crops may get damaged if the rains continued,” observed V. Neelakandan, district secretary, Tamizhaga Vivasayigal Sangam.

Cloud burst

Perambalur Collector V. Santha who inspected the rain damages in Arumbavur and Poolampadi areas in Veppanthattai taluk during the day, said an apparent cloud burst at Ayyarpalayam on the Pachamalai hill ranges had triggered landslips, leading to rock slides, uprooted trees and changes in water courses.

New streams of water could be seen flowing down from Pachamalai. Steps would be taken to compensate farmers whose crops have been damaged by the flash floods in the jungle streams, she said.

In Pudukottai district, there was let up in the rain for most part of the day on Monday, much to the relief of the town residents. Pudukottai town had recorded 40 mm of rainfall during the previous 24-hours. Ponnamaravathy (45.40 mm) Annavasal (45) and Thirumayam (32.20) in the district also got some sharp showers during the period.

Most of the tanks in the town, including the Pallavankulam and the Adappankulam had filled up. The Kavinadu Kanmai near Pudukottai, one of the biggest tanks in the district, was also getting substantial inflows. In Manamelkudi taluk, some families were moved to a public shelter after rainwater inundated the Krishnajipattinam locality.

The body of a male infant, believed to be around six-months-old, was found in a drainage canal near the Railway Station in Pudukottai town. On being alerted by the public, the Thirukokarnam police removed the body for post-mortem. It is suspected that the baby could have been washed away in the rainwater during the heavy spells over the past few days. However, the identity of the child is yet to be established.

In Ariyalur district, Ponneri, spread over 700 acres with a capacity to hold 114 million cubic feet, in Jayamkondam union filled up on Sunday prompting Collector D. Rathna to inspect the release of about 850 cusecs of surplus water from the tank. Jayamkondam recorded 38 mm of rainfall till Monday morning. Paddy fields in some villages in the locality were inundated.

In Tiruchi district, Musiri recorded the maximum of 65.50 mm rainfall and Ponnaniyar Dam recorded 54.40 mm. However, the dam, situated on the Tiruchi-Karur border, is yet to fill up. Similarly, most of the 98 rain-fed tanks under the Ariyar Division of the Public Works Department had less than 50% of their storage capacities. Only eight of the tanks have filled up. The Kumbakudi tank on the outskirts of Tiruchi was getting good inflows and is expected to get filled up in the next few days.

However, almost all the 76 system tanks under the control of the River Conservation (RC) Division of the PWD have filled up in Tiruchi district. A senior official of the division said all system tanks in Thanjavur and Ariyalur districts, under the control of RC Division, Tiruchi, have also filled up.

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