State Governments silence on second-phase of Athikadavu-Avinashi venture irks farmers in Western area

Farmers’ associations in Coimbatore and Tiruppur have expressed disappointment over the ‘silence’ of the federal government on second section implementation of Athikadavu-Avinashi groundwater recharge venture.

While talking on the latest assembly in Udumalpet, Chief Minister M.Okay. Stalin didn’t get past stating that the primary section of the venture was inaugurated in the course of the DMK regime.

Farmers within the area have, for lengthy, been asking for initiation of the second section of the venture.

The section I venture carried out at a value of ₹1,916.41 crore has paved means for irrigation of 24,468 acres in Coimbatore, Tiruppur and Erode districts.

Pipelines had been laid from the downstream of Kalingarayan Anicut to divert 1.5 tmc surplus water to 1,045 water our bodies.

The petitions submitted subsequently by the farmers to the federal government for implementation of phase-II of the venture have known as for connecting an extra 1,400 water our bodies as a way to add 15,000 extra acres underneath tank water irrigation.

The pipelines laid underneath Phase I to a size of 1,065 km throughout the three districts hyperlink 32 lakes of Water Resources Department, and 42 lakes and 971 ponds underneath Panchayat Unions.

In Coimbatore district, farmers in Karamadai block might be benefitted considerably when the phase-II of the venture will get carried out.

There are nonetheless a piece of water our bodies linked by pipelines underneath Phase-I that don’t get ample provide.

According to the farmers, solely 800 water our bodies are getting the provision. The energy provide is lower than the specified degree within the six pumping stations.

Officials of Water Resource Department have obtained petitions from the farmers within the tail-end to rectify the breakages induced to the pipelines resulting from road-digging works carried out by TWAD, Highways and different authorities departments.

A senior official of WRD stated blockages within the pipelines had been being cleared.

On Thursday, farmers demanding second section implementation held a gathering at Avinashi to determine on the subsequent plan of action.

“We had been promised by the DMK Government that the second section might be taken up instantly. But, even after passage of 4.5 years, there was no progress,” ‘Athikadavu’ Sampath, who was within the forefront of sustained protests by farmers throughout 2016 for first-phase implementation of the venture stated.

“An analogous protest might be carried out if there is no such thing as a response from the federal government’s facet for our demand for allocation of funds for second-phase of the venture,” Mr. Sampath stated.