Negligence in desilting has delayed Cauvery water reaching tail-end areas in Tamil Nadu: Nainar Nagenthran

BJP Tamil Nadu president Nainar Nagenthran, on Tuesday (August 5, 2025), alleged that although water from the Mettur reservoir was released on June 12 for irrigating crops in the Cauvery delta districts of Tamil Nadu, it has not reached the tail-end areas of Nagapattinam, Mayiladuthurai and Tiruvarur districts.

In a statement, he said the Kuruvai paddy crop in these districts had started to wither due to the non-availability of adequate water for irrigation. “Despite allocating several crores of rupees year after year, the river channels and ponds have not been properly desilted, leading to the accumulation of silt and making them unfit for storing water. This situation is due to the negligence of the DMK government,” he said.

Though the main river channels are brimming, the distributaries and smaller channels branching from them remain dry, he said. “In the name of fulfilling the irrigation needs of farmers, the DMK government had formed a separate Water Resources Department but failed to implement schemes effectively, he charged.

The State government should take efforts on a war footing to ensure that water resources in Tamil Nadu are properly managed, he added.