Chennai: Tamil Nadu Chief Minister, C. Joseph Vijay, on Tuesday opened the sluice gates of the Stanley Reservoir at Mettur, releasing water for irrigation across the Cauvery delta after a delay of nearly three months caused by inadequate rainfall and poor storage.
The government plans to continue the release for 45 days from September 1, depending on inflows and the availability of water in the reservoir. The discharge is expected to benefit agricultural lands in the delta districts, where farmers have been awaiting water to begin cultivation.
Water from the Mettur dam is normally released on June 12 every year to support kuruvai, the short-duration paddy crop cultivated extensively in the Cauvery delta. This year, however, the customary opening had to be postponed because of deficient rainfall in the river’s catchment areas and insufficient storage in the reservoir.
The event marked Vijay’s first visit to Mettur since taking office as Chief Minister on May 10. The release assumes significance as farmers face mounting uncertainty over irrigation and the availability of Cauvery water during the agricultural season.
The opening also comes against the backdrop of the continuing dispute between Tamil Nadu and Karnataka over the sharing of Cauvery water.
On Monday, the Supreme Court adjourned the case until September 15 after Tamil Nadu sought directions to Karnataka to clear the accumulated shortfall in releases.
A Bench comprising Justices Vikram Nath and Sandeep Mehta asked both States to place subsequent developments on record before the next hearing.
Appearing for Tamil Nadu, senior advocate C.S. Vaidyanathan submitted that Karnataka had failed to make good the shortfall despite the matter having been recorded by the Cauvery Water Management Authority.
He said large stretches of farmland in Tamil Nadu depended on Cauvery water and urged the court to ensure that the State received its rightful allocation. Karnataka disputed the allegation and maintained that it was releasing more water than the stipulated quantity.
Its counsel, senior advocate Shyam Divan, told the court that Karnataka released 9,888 cusecs on August 30 against the required 9,000 cusecs.
He added that the discharge had subsequently exceeded 11,000 cusecs. The Bench observed that Karnataka had increased the release from 11,000 to 12,000 cusecs from August 12.
Tamil Nadu had approached the court seeking enforcement of the authority’s directions, warning that any continuing deficit could severely affect delta agriculture.
(IANS)
