SALEM: Chief minister C Joseph Vijay will release water from the Mettur dam on Sept 1 for irrigation in the Cauvery delta districts, rural development and water resources minister N Anand announced on Wednesday. The decision comes in the wake of insufficient southwest monsoon rainfall in the Cauvery basin and mounting demands from farmers for irrigation support.In a statement, the minister said water would be released for 45 days, subject to inflow and storage levels. “At the start of the irrigation year, the dam held only 41.223 tmc feet, making it impossible to provide continuous supply. A minimum reserve of 10 tmc feet had to be maintained, and water was released only for drinking needs. With inflows improving, the govt has now resolved to meet both drinking water and irrigation requirements,” Anand said.He emphasized that Tamil Nadu had consistently asserted its rights before the Cauvery Water Regulatory Commission, the Cauvery Water Management Authority and the Supreme Court, securing orders to ensure water availability at Billigundulu. “Karnataka has been directed to release 3,500, 9,000, and 12,000 cusecs at different times, reinforcing Tamil Nadu’s entitlement,” he said.The minister urged farmers to use water judiciously and follow technical advice from the agriculture department on land preparation, nursery establishment, sowing and crop selection, particularly short and medium-duration rice varieties. District collectors concerned and officials of the water resources and agriculture departments have been instructed to coordinate to ensure maximum irrigation benefit from every drop of water.Water level in the dam was nearing the 90 feet required for irrigation release. On Wednesday, it stood at 88.84 feet with storage at 51.33 tmc feet and inflow at 10,405 cusecs. About 2,000 cusecs was being released for drinking purposes.Meanwhile, security arrangements at the dam were reviewed on Wednesday ahead of the chief minister’s visit. Western zone inspector general R V Ramya Bharathi, Salem range DIG Santosh Hadimani and Salem district superintendent of police S Kuthalingam inspected the dam and discussed safety measures with water resources department officials. Police personnel have been deployed, and painting and cleaning work was under way around the dam premises.The Mettur dam, with a full reservoir level of 120 feet, provides irrigation to 16.05 lakh acres across 12 districts, including Salem, Erode, Namakkal, Trichy, Thanjavur, and Tiruvarur. Water could not be released on June 12 due to low levels, leaving the delta dry and forcing farmers to rely on well irrigation for kuruvai cultivation.
