Mettur dam water release for irrigation has been halted after the reservoir level fell below 60 feet, leaving samba paddy farmers in Tamil Nadu’s Cauvery delta dependent on the northeast monsoon and raising concerns over drinking-water availability next summer.
Water resources department officials stopped the release on Thursday night after the reservoir level stood at 59.13 feet in the morning, with storage of 24.04 thousand million cubic feet (tmcft). Inflow into the reservoir fell from about 900 cusecs to 696 cusecs, while storage declined sharply over the previous two weeks.
The reservoir has fallen below 60 feet for the first time in more than three years. It last reached that level in August 2023, according to the report. Officials attributed the decline to inadequate southwest monsoon rainfall in Karnataka and Kerala, lower inflows and the absence of surplus releases from Karnataka reservoirs while water continued to be drawn for irrigation.
Mettur dam is traditionally opened on June 12 for irrigation in the Cauvery delta districts of Thanjavur, Tiruvarur, Nagapattinam, Mayiladuthurai, Tiruchy and Ariyalur. Poor storage prevented the customary release this year. Subsequent rainfall in Karnataka’s catchment areas and inflows from upstream reservoirs pushed the water level above 90 feet, enabling the Tamil Nadu government to release water on September 1. Authorities had said the supply would continue for 45 days.
At the end of that period, officials downed the dam’s shutters. Farmers said adequate water had not reached several tail-end areas after they began samba cultivation. Agriculture department sources said the coming weeks would be crucial because crops in many parts of the delta are at the vegetative growth stage and require timely rainfall or supplementary irrigation for healthy development.
Cauvery V Dhanapalan, president of the Federation of All Farmers Associations in Nagapattinam district, said nearly five lakh acres of samba crops in Tiruvarur and Nagapattinam could dry up if there was no further Cauvery water release and the northeast monsoon failed. He said the state government should provide full compensation under the crop insurance scheme if standing crops were damaged.
S Vimal Nathan, secretary of the Tamil Nadu Cauvery Uzavargal Pathugappu Sangam in Swamimalai, Thanjavur district, said farmers would face severe financial losses if the northeast monsoon did not support the crop. He also called for Tamil Nadu to be declared drought-hit if rainfall remained deficient and urged the state government to seek assistance from the Centre under disaster relief provisions.
Officials have also expressed concern over drinking-water availability next summer. Mettur dam supplies drinking water to several districts, while about 9.60 tmcft has been earmarked for drinking-water requirements and for sustaining the reservoir ecosystem.
The falling water level has exposed parts of the submerged Jalakanteswarar temple at Pannavadi, including the Nandi idol and its pedestal. The temple and other structures, including the twin church towers at Sethukuzhi, were submerged when residents were relocated during construction of the Mettur dam. The emerging landmarks have begun attracting tourists and devotees to the Pannavadi coracle point as the reservoir recedes.
