T.N. gears up for Southwest monsoon; CM Stalin reviews preparedness

T.N. gears up for Southwest monsoon; CM Stalin reviews preparedness

The Tamil Nadu government is gearing up to face the Southwest monsoon and for the release of water from the Mettur dam on the customary date of June 12. Chief Minister M.K. Stalin on Monday (May 19, 2025) chaired a meeting to review precautionary measures being undertaken by various departments over the Southwest monsoon.

The storage in Mettur dam stood at dam stood at 108.33 feet with 76.06 tmc of water, as on May 17, and there was sufficient water for the release on June 12 for kuruvai cultivation, the Chief Minister said during the meeting. He advised officials to ensure all precautionary measures are in place for the Southwest monsoon.

While chairing the meeting at the Secretariat in Chennai, Mr. Stalin instructed officials to ensure that water from Mettur reached the tail-end areas. Arrangements were being made for kar, kuruvai, sornavari cultivations by the Agriculture Department, he noted, and further advised officials to speed up and complete desilting work.

Since the production from kuruvai cultivation is expected to be higher due to the Southwest monsoon as well as the release from the Mettur dam, he instructed officials of the Agriculture Department to ensure the availability of agricultural inputs for farmers. Though Met Department officials have predicted normal rainfall during the Southwest monsoon, the Chief Minister has warned officials of possible heavy rains, flash floods, landslides in the Nilgiris, among other areas.

He instructed officials to ensure the round-the-clock functioning of monitoring and control rooms, maintaining communication systems, ensuring the supply of electricity and drinking water, and availability of relief shelters and first responders. “If our preparations are proactive, beyond the usual level of preparedness, we could avoid the impact of disasters,” the Chief Minister said.

Mr. Stalin instructed officials to ensure public safety on roads and highways, storage of agricultural produces in godowns, monitoring and maintaining of storage in various reservoirs, speeding up various civic projects, among others. “All departments should work in tandem to ensure there is no loss of life or impact on public infrastructure and assets during the Southwest monsoon. I request all government employees to extend their dedication towards this.”

Ministers Duraimurugan, Udhayanidhi Stalin, K.N. Nehru, E.V. Velu, M.R.K. Panneerselvam, K.K.S.S.R. Ramachandran, Anitha R. Radhakrishnan, S.S. Sivasankar, and P.K. Sekarbabu; Chief Secretary N. Muruganandam; and senior officials took part in the meeting.