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Image source, M. K. Stalin facebook
The Chief Minister today inaugurated the Mettur Dam for irrigation. Stalin. Nearby is the Minister of Irrigation Duraimurugan.
The Cauvery, the main river in Tamil Nadu, was opened for agriculture in May for the first time since independence. To what extent will this benefit agriculture?
The Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu today inaugurated the Mettur Dam, the largest dam in Tamil Nadu. Stalin keeps it open. According to the Mettur Dam, the delta districts usually open on June 12 every year for agriculture.
The Mettur Dam was opened on June 12 last year. If the water level of Mettur Dam is around 100 feet, the dam will be opened on the specified date. Otherwise, it will only open after it is filled with water.
Due to good rainfall over the last few days in the catchment areas of Cauvery, the amount of water coming into the dam has continued to increase. Thus, the water level of the dam soon exceeded 115 feet. Due to this the water level of the dam today was 117.76 feet and the water reserve was 89.942 TMC.
As the water level continues to rise, the dam is expected to be fully filled soon, even if the water is open.
This is the second time since India’s independence that water has been released for three consecutive years, on or before June 12, the date on which water is released for cultivation. Not only this, this is the first time that water has been opened for irrigation so early in May.
The water opened at 3,000 cubic feet per second this morning. It was gradually raised to 10,000 cubic feet by evening. The same amount of water will be provided till the end of June. The amount of water supplied in July will be gradually increased from 10,000 cubic feet to 16,000 cubic feet. It will be raised to 18,000 cubic feet per second in August.
Image source, M k stalin facebook page
Kuruva is cultivated on 5,22,000 acres in the irrigated areas of the Cauvery Delta. For this, the water should be open from June 12 to September 15. It has a capacity of 125 TMC. Will require water. However, the entire requirement of this water is not met by the water of the dam. 99.74 TMC water from Mettur dam and the remaining 25.26 TMC water will be replenished by rain and ground water.
As far as Kuruai irrigation is concerned, it will be carried out on 4,91,200 acres of land in Namakkal, Karur, Trichy, Thanjavur, Thiruvarur, Nagapattinam and Mayiladuthurai districts. The irrigated lands will require 93,860 TMC of water and the 30,800 acres of land in Cuddalore and Ariyalur districts will require 5.88 TMC of water from the Mettur dam.
Is it a good idea to open the Mettur Dam early?
“Early opening of the Mettur Dam will be beneficial in many ways. Cultivation of curry can be started early. Harvest will be completed before the onset of monsoon in September-October. Good yield will be available,” said Bhaskar, Tanjore district president of the Tamil Nadu Cauvery Farmers’ Association.
And the samba crop will grow significantly before the rains. It can withstand rain. Apart from this, Bhaskar says workers will continue to get jobs in Kuruai and Samba.
Above all, the long-running water in the river canals of the delta districts will cause the groundwater level in the mother districts to rise. There are many positive aspects such as being able to go up to the water outlet areas in a timely manner.
Apart from all these, electricity can be obtained for a long time from the hydroelectric power stations set up at the Mettur Dam. A total of 250 MW of electricity is generated by the power plants at the dam. In the lower part of the dam a total of 210 MW of electricity is generated by 7 gate hydropower.
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