DMK government has failed in water management: Anbumani

ARIYALUR

Pattali Makkal Katchi (PMK) president Anbumani Ramadoss on Saturday said that the DMK government had miserably failed in water management in the State. 

Embarking on a two-day padayatra, seeking the restoration of Chola-period irrigation structures, from Keezhapazhur in Ariyalur district, Dr. Anbumani said that about 430 tmc of water had been let into the sea over the past five months. It was disheartening to see the water going waste when several lakes and waterbodies on the banks of the Kollidam river, built during Chola period, had poor storage. The DMK government had failed to pay attention to harness the water, he charged. 

Dr. Anbumani said that Ariyalur district had a number of ancient irrigation structures including Kandiratheetham lake, Karaivetti lake, Sukkiraneri, Ponneri and Suthamalli dam. Many of the irrigation structures were interconnected with each other. But sheer negligence and irresponsibility of the successive rulers had resulted in large scale encroachment of water bodies down the years. The absence of a far sighted approach and the failure of the rulers in desilting waterbodies had ultimately shrunk the cultivable areas. 

The Grand Anicut (Kallanai) built during the Chola period was still serving lakhs of farmers of the entire delta region in the State. The Cauvery river, the lifeline of farmers of the State, was also a major drinking water source of the people of the State, including those in Chennai. But successive AIADMK and the DMK government had not bothered to take concrete steps to create reservoirs to store surplus water over the past 55 years. Time was ripe for the State government to announce a comprehensive scheme to harness the surplus flows in the Cauvery by building new check dams, rejuvenating the interconnected waterbodies and inlet and outlet canals and diverting water to the dry and needy areas.

The Kollidam river that traverses 110 km from Mukkombu should have at least 10 check dams. All age-old waterbodies in Ariyalur and Cuddalore should be restored. The State government should allot ₹3,000 crore to revive the Chola period water structures, Dr. Anbumani demanded. 

The yatra will cover various parts of Ariyalur district and culminate at Veeranam near Kattumannarkoil in Cuddalore district on Sunday. Dr. Anbumani interacted with the people along the padayatra route and distributes pamphlets highlighting the importance of reviving the Chola period irrigation network.