PWD caves in to farmers’ plea for water release in Uyyakkondan

Demolition of the structure blocking water underway

BRINGING DOWN THE WALL: PWD officials and farmers at the structure that has been put up between Pulivalam and Ailaipettai in Tiruchidistrict on Tuesday.

A potentially explosive situation was averted here on Tuesday morning when the Public Works Department (PWD) authorities agreed to release water in the Uyyakkondan channel to save the standing crops of banana and sugarcane.

Though about 2,000 cusecs (cubic feet per second) water is being released from Mettur dam, mainly for drinking water purposes, the grievance of the farmers of the 17-channel area is that the PWD officials have stopped the water from flowing into the channel. A wall like structure put up near the new bridge coming up between Pulivalam and Ailaipettai is found to be the major reason for the blockage of water.

A number of farmers, led by Puliyur R.Nagarajan, vice president of Tamil Nadu Congress Committee (agriculturists wing) and Aiyilai Sivasuriyan, district secretary, Tamil Nadu Vivasayigal Sangham, had announced that they would resort to road blockade if water was not released forthwith. They alleged that thousands of acres of annual crops like sugarcane and banana were withering in the region served by the Uyyankondan channel because of shortage of water. Uyyakkondan channel alone has an ayacut of more than 23,000 acres and is one among the channels permitted by the British to have riparian rights for 11 months a year. (However, Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal refused to buy the argument of these farmers who go in for crops like banana and sugarcane saying that paddy should be given the priority).

The farmers pointed out that they had brought the withering banana crops to the district collectorate a few days ago in order to impress upon the authorities the gravity of the situation. A number of farmers have spent as much as Rs.100 per sucker and even those which have come up to a level of three feet have withered, the farmers lamented.

Though the talks the officials had with the farmers on Monday night failed to break the ice, Assistant Executive Engineer, PWD, Siva Kumar, Assistant Engineer Thyagarajan , Srirangam Tahsildar Rangarajan and Somarasampettai Inspector of Police Mohan resumed the talks once again on Tuesday morning.

Ultimately when the PWD authorities agreed to the plea of the farmers to release some water into the Uyyakkoandan channel, tension was defused and the latter dispersed. The works relating to release of water like demolition of the wall were going on till late in the evening.