Farmers oppose illegally dug canal to divert water to irrigation tank

Farmers in Tirunelveli oppose an illegal canal diverting water, fearing it will harm local agriculture and livelihoods.

Opposing the unlawful digging of canal from an irrigation tank at Moolaikkaraipatti near here to take water to another tank, a group of farmers on Monday submitted a petition to Collector R. Sukumar during the weekly grievances redressal meeting at the Collectorate.

According to the petitioners, the Tanarkulam at Moolaikkaraipatti feeds paddy and plantain raised on around 110 acres of land in the area as the water body gets water from the Third Reach Canal of Manimuthar Dam. Moreover, the wild streams also bring water to the tank when it rains. When the tank overflows, the surplus water is released to Achchampadu tank.

Against this norm, an individual having strong political and communal backing, has dug a canal illegally from the wild streams bringing water to Tanarkulam tank to divert water directly to Achchampadu tank. If the unlawful canal is allowed, it will deny rainwater to Tanarkulam and the farmers have to depend only on water from Third Reach Canal.

“An Assistant Engineer of the Public Works Department and an assistant in the department are helping and guiding the individual in digging the illegal canal to take rainwater from Tanarkulam tank to Achchampadu tank illegally. When we filed a complaint with Moolaikkaraipatti police, the Assistant Engineer told the police that the canal was dug after getting due permission, which is untrue. Moreover, the PWD official and the individual have given a similar reply to the Revenue Inspector and the Village Administrative Officer to bury the truth. When we contacted Sub-Divisional Engineer, PWD, Subramania Pandian, he told us that no permission was given to dig canal to take rainwater to Achchampadu Tank. Moreover, the individual is threatening the farmers objecting to this illegal canal. If the unlawful canal is allowed to exist, it will wipe out farming operation in Moolaikkaraipatti area,” said M. Jamal Maideen, a farmer of Moolaikkaraipatti.

Residents of Bethel Nagar at the Collectorate in Tirunelveli on Monday. | Photo Credit: A. SHAIKMOHIDEEN

Stoutly objecting to the move to open a TASMAC liquor shop in their area, a group of villagers from Bethel Nagar, Kiramangalam and Pattankallur, all under Pazhavoor village panchayat, submitted a petition to the Collector.