The Hindu : Tamil Nadu News : Remove pumpsets: farmers

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Tuesday, Aug 12, 2008
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Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu

Remove pumpsets: farmers

Staff Reporter

Cancel G.O. linking Uppar Dam with PAP schemes, they demand

Photo: M. Balaji

Protect water: Farmers staging a demonstration at Pollachi on Monday demanding the removal of pumpsets along River Aliyar and the withdrawal of the order to link Uppar with PAP scheme. –

Pollachi: Thousand of farmers staged a demonstration in front of the Water Resource Organisation of the Public Works Department on Pollachi Road on Monday demanding the removal of of pump sets used to steal water from Aliyar.

They demanded the cancellation of the Government Order (GO) linking Uppar dam with Parambikulam Aliyar Project (PAP) schemes.

The demonstration was organised by the Federation of the Presidents of the Irrigation Committees of PAP and the Thirumurthy Reservoir Scheme. The demonstration was led by the federation president, S.R. Rajagopal, and the Thirumurthy Reservoir Scheme president, Medical K. Paramasivam.

In a memorandum sent to the Chief Minister, the associations said that close to 4.25 lakh acres of agriculture lands were benefitted by the PAP scheme through the Aliyar Reservoir since 1961 and from Thirumurthy reservoir since 1967. With the rainfall proving to be inadequate, the PAP scheme was not getting 30.5 tmcft of water and on an average the reservoirs were getting only 15 to 20 tmcft of water.

After the withdrawal for drinking and wastage owing to seepage and evaporation in the contour canal, only to 15 to 17 tmcft was available.

Now the farmers were getting water only for 90 days a year as against the projected supply for irrigation for 135 days. According to the pact with Kerala, Tamil Nadu should release 7.25 tmcft of water from the Manacadavu sluice to Aliyar.

About 4 tmcft of water is stolen using pumps along the river sides, say farmers.

The agreement stated that only 1.8 tmcft of water could be released into Aliyar for irrigating lands through the Aliyar new ayacut. Only the water from the Aliyar catchments should be used to release 7.25 tmcft to Kerala. As a result of the water theft from Aliyar, the same was being compensated by withdrawing more from Thirumurthy reservoir and contour canal.

This had affected farming on over 3.78 lakh acres under the Thirumurthy Ayacut. In 2003, the federations had moved a Public Interest Litigation before the Madras High Court seeking removal of pump sets. The court directed the Government to remove the pump sets. The demonstrators wanted the Government to implement the court order. In 1993, a Government Order made Uppar a sub scheme of PAP stating that 300 tmcft of water should be released to Uppar from PAP reservoirs in case of excessive storage.

The federation had obtained a stay on it. Another Government Order was issued vesting the admininstratrion of Uppar dam with the PAP division once again. The demonstrators wanted withdrawal of this Government Order.

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