Pamaka youth leader Anbumani Ramadas has blamed the Mettur dam for overflowing due to heavy rains and for not taking action to fill 22 lakes after the water level of the Mettur dam reached 119 feet for five days. Heavy rains are expected as the northeast monsoon intensifies. Thus the Mettur Dam filled up fast and the surplus water discharged from the Mettur Dam has been mixed in the sea by 9 TMC water in the last 5 days alone. Pamaka youth leader Anbumani Ramadas has stressed that if a small portion of it is filled in 22 lakes, more than a thousand acres of land will be irrigated.
In a statement issued today, Anbumani Ramadass said: “The Mettur Dam, the largest source of irrigation in Tamil Nadu, is almost full.
Mettur Dam
The water level of the Mettur Dam, which has a total water level of 120 feet, is 119 feet as of this morning. Although the Mettur Dam is nearing its full capacity, it is very disappointing that water is not being pumped to the Salem district lakes with the surplus water.
100 dry lakes
The Mettur Surplus Water Project was announced in 2019 to fill 100 dry lakes in the 4 blocks of Mettur, Omalur, Edappadi and Sankagiri in the Salem District with the surplus water of the Mettur Dam.
Some cases
The project is yet to be completed as some cases are pending regarding the acquisition of 241 acres of land for the project. However, the construction of the primary pumping station at Thippampatti is almost complete. From there, structures have been constructed to carry water to M. Kalipatti Lake.
Water power generation
The water level of Mettur Dam has reached 119 feet in the last 5 days. If the water coming into the dam stagnates without opening, the dam will fill up in a few hours. However, as a precautionary measure, the water department is maintaining the water level of the dam at 119 feet. A few days ago the dam was receiving water at a rate of 26,000 cubic feet per second. The water level dropped to 16,000 cubic feet this morning. The water coming into the dam is released into the Cauvery River for hydropower.
22 lakes
If the Tamil Nadu government thinks it can take the surplus water from the Mettur dam and carry it to M. Kalipatti lake through the Thippampatti pumping station. Since 22 lakes from Lake M. Kalipatti to Lake Manathal have been connected by canals since ancient times, if water comes to Lake Kalipatti, the remaining 21 lakes will naturally fill up. But why did the Water Resources Department and the Salem District Administration not take action to fill 22 lakes in five days when the water level of the Mettur Dam reached 119 feet? I do not know.
Can fill 100 lakes
The project to fill the lakes with the surplus water of the Mettur Dam will not cause any harm to anyone. Even if a total of 100 lakes were to be filled under the project, only 0.555 TMC of water would be required. 126 cubic feet of water per second is sufficient for this purpose.
9 TMC water in the sea
But now only a fraction of that can fill lakes, so very little water is enough. In the last 5 days alone, 9 TMC of water has been mixed in the sea from the Mettur dam. If a small portion of it is filled in 22 lakes, more than a thousand acres of land will be irrigated. If you do not take advantage of this opportunity now, you do not know when the next Mettur Dam will fill up.
60 year demand
The Mettur surplus water project is not normally available. Now, 88 years after the construction of the Mettur Dam, the demand for implementation of its overflow project has been raised for the last 60 years. Bamaga has been pushing for the implementation of the project for the last 30 years.
Action required
More than 50,000 people took part in the Ramdas-led protest in Salem in 2008 in support of this demand. In 2017, I conducted an awareness campaign tour in Salem and Namakkal districts emphasizing the same demand. Following that, the project was announced and almost completed. This struggling project should not be wasted. Therefore, the government should take immediate action to fill 22 lakes, including Kalipatti Lake, with the surplus water of the Mettur Dam.