TN farmers deprived of allotted water because of temples near canal
Sathankulam farmers seek demolition of lower bridge blocking water flow; Thimmarajapuram villagers oppose demolition saying it is the only link for temple cars
Farmers at a village in Tamil Nadu’s Thoothukudi district are reportedly being deprived of enough irrigation water because of temples in the neighbouring Tirunelveli district.
The farmers of Sathankulam — who are the beneficiaries of the Thamirabarani-Nambiar-Karumeniyar river inter-linking project — have urged the Tirunelveli district administration to break the lower bridge across a link canal at Thimmarajapuram near Kallikadaikurichi, according to a report by The New Indian Express.
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However, Thimmarajapuram villagers have reportedly opposed the lower bridge’s demolition, stating that the temples cars belonging to three different communities’ temples will not run on the new bridge and that they could only do so on the old bridge.
The petition
The report says the link canal is the spot where the surplus water is diverted to Sathankulam and Thisayanvilai, under the river interlinking project inaugurated by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin a month ago.
The Sathankulam farmers’ petition says that the lower bridge at Thimmarajapuram, on the flood carrier from the Kannadian Canal till the water storage established at Thinaiyoorani, obstructs the water flow.
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Although a higher bridge was constructed in Thimmarajapuram, the lower bridge has still not been demolished.
Temples get in the way
The president of the Sathankulam South Farmers Association, Lourdumani, has been quoted by media reports as saying that the flood carrier was designed to carry 3,200 cusecs of surplus water from the Kannadian canal.
However, the lower bridge has reduced the water flow to 2,000 cusecs, reducing the inflow into the Nambiyar and Karumeniyar which drains into the ML Theri in Sathankulam.
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However, Thimmarajapuram villagers say the Water Resources Department (WRD) should first make necessary alterations to run the temple car on the new bridge.
A WRD official told The New Indian Express that once the cultivation season ends this year, there will be talks with the villagers about the demolition of the lower bridge and alterations to the new bridge.
