Chennai, Expressing deep concern over the sharp drop in Mettur dam’s water storage due to Karnataka “reducing” release of Cauvery water, PMK president Anbumani Ramadoss on Tuesday urged the Tamil Nadu government to provide direct relief packages to safeguard farmers’ livelihoods.
He also urged the state government to issue clear advisories on direct seeding techniques, as nursery raising is no longer viable for late-September planting ahead of the monsoon, and ensure unrestricted availability of seeds, fertilizers, and micro-nutrients. In a party statement, Anbumani claimed that following a drastic reduction in water discharge from Karnataka reservoirs, inflow into the Mettur Dam plummeted to 2,281 cusecs. To address the challenges, the Tamil Nadu government should provide a compensation of ₹ 25,000 per acre to the affected farmers who were unable to undertake Samba or Thaladi cultivation due to lack of water, extend a special Samba input assistance package of ₹ 10,000 per acre to all participating farmers and guarantee continuous 3-phase electricity until February 2027 for the remaining 60 per cent of land relying on groundwater irrigation, he demanded.
“As a result, the dam’s water level has dropped to 84 feet , with total storage shrinking to 46 TMC , just 49.21 per cent of its full capacity of 93.47 TMC”, the Rajya Sabha member said. Karnataka should have released 113.33 TMC of water to Tamil Nadu by September 22, but has delivered a “mere 43 TMC”, leaving a shortfall of 70 TMC, he said, according to Cauvery Water Disputes Tribunal and Supreme Court orders.
