Delta farmers worry over Cauvery water reaching tail-end areas

Despite the Mettur Dam being opened, delta farmers in Nagapattinam and Tiruvarur are anxious whether Cauvery water will reach the tail-end areas due to incomplete canal desilting work. The dam was opened by Chief Minister Vijay on September 1st for 45 days at 3,000 cubic feet per second, expected to irrigate about 16 lakh acres across 12 districts. However, incomplete desilting of branch canals like Moongiladi, Pandathan, and Keeraneri from the Kavirikondan river has farmers worried. Farmers also report the Arasalar river in Thanjavur is overgrown with bushes, affecting 1.5 lakh acres, and the Maraikorai river in Tiruvarur hasn't been desilted in 20 years, impacting over 30,000 acres across 25 villages. They urge immediate government action.