The Hindu : Tamil Nadu News : `Include Tamil Nadu in drought-hit list'

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Friday, Jul 30, 2004

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu

`Include Tamil Nadu in drought-hit list'

By Our Special Correspondent

CHENNAI, JULY 29. The Chief Minister, Jayalalithaa, today wrote to the Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh, stressing the need to include Tamil Nadu in the list of States to be supported for handling drought-like conditions.

In a statement here today, she said she learnt from the media that the Cabinet Secretary on July 27 convened a meeting to review drought conditions in nine States. "It is also learnt that the Hon'ble Prime Minister has proposed to convene a meeting of Chief Ministers of rain-deficient States next week." Pointing out that Tamil Nadu faced successive monsoon failures, she said this year too the southwest monsoon was disappointing and that Tamil Nadu was among the States with the lowest per capita water availability.

Between June 1 and July-end this year, 15 of the 30 districts received deficient rainfall. "Eleven of these 15 districts are experiencing a shortfall greater than 20 per cent of the normal. In Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh, the situation is similar to the one in Tamil Nadu where some districts have received extremely deficient rainfall. While these States have been invited for a discussion, for some inexplicable reason Tamil Nadu has been left out," the Chief Minister said.

She said the eastern seaboard districts, which earlier suffered because of a bad northeast monsoon, were greatly affected.

`Karnataka to blame'

Besides, nine districts were affected by non-release of Cauvery water, due to Tamil Nadu, by Karnataka. "As on July 29, the shortfall in receipt of our share of water in the Cauvery from Karnataka is 16.619 tmcft (thousand million cubic feet). This has resulted in our inability to open the Mettur reservoir in time for the kuruvai crop for the third year in succession," Ms.Jayalalithaa said, pointing out that she wrote to the Prime Minister on June 4 requesting him to convene the Cauvery River Authority. "I wish to bring to your personal notice the extreme deprivation and want created by successive monsoon failures and Karnataka's refusal to give us our rightful share of Cauvery water. Thus, the situation warrants immediate intervention...Failure of the monsoon and drought conditions add to the extreme water stress. It is well acknowledged that Tamil Nadu is a water-starved State, needing support to handle the crisis posed by drought conditions."

Charge of doublespeak

In a press note released along with a copy of the letter, Ms.Jayalalithaa charged the Central Ministers from Tamil Nadu with not taking interest in the issue. "It is shocking and shameful that though there are 12 Ministers in the Union Government hailing from Tamil Nadu, they have not bothered to take steps to get Tamil Nadu included in the list of States to be supported by the Government of India for drought-relief operations. While these Ministers during the recent general elections cried themselves hoarse about their concern for the welfare of the farmers and the poor in Tamil Nadu, they have failed in their duty to take up the case of Tamil Nadu for assistance from the Government of India. The people of Tamil Nadu will certainly take these Ministers and the parties they represent to task for the doublespeak they indulged in — saying one thing at the time of elections and forgetting their promises immediately after they secured for themselves office and authority at the Centre," she said.

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