TIRUNELVELI
Though the unexpected thunder showers brought down the soaring temperatures and cheers among the residents and the water managers as well as the influx of water into the dams jacked up the rapidly falling water level, the farmers who were preparing for the harvest of ‘pisanam’ paddy are much worried since the untimely rains inundated the standing crop in a few places.
The summer rain, triggered by the low pressure in Southwest Bay of Bengal, became strong in several places in the district, particularly in the areas close to the Western Ghats, around midnight. While some parts of the district witnessed strong drizzle for a few hours from midnight, a few other areas experienced good rain fall.
Consequently, influx of water into the dams increased sharply, particularly in the Papanasam and Servalar Dams. While the 190 mm rainfall increased the water level from the Papanasam reservoir, the second largest dam of the district from 28 feet to 32 feet, storage level in the smaller Servalar dam rose from 19 feet to 49 feet.
As the standing paddy ready for harvest at Kalakkad, Keezhapaavoor, Arugankulam, Kattudaiyaarkudiyiruppu, Thiruvannanathapuram and other areas was inundated by the rain, the farmers are much worried. While the farmers were seen draining the stagnant rainwater from the fields, the agriculturists, in some areas, manually harvested the paddy and dried-up the crop along the nearby roads.
“We’ve drained the stagnant rainwater now to allow the field to dry-up so that the harvester can be used at least after four or five days. If the rain continues, it will take more time for us to harvest the crop,” says N. Balamurugan, a farmer from Keezhapaavoor.
Since there was no rain in the district during the sunny day, the officials feel that the unexpected showers would not have any impact on the paddy.
“Immediate steps were taken to drain the water from the paddy fields. The farmers had cultivated paddy on 61,000 hectare in the district during last ‘pisanam’ season and have so far harvested the crop on 40,000 hectare. The remaining standing crop will be harvested as the dampness in the field goes off,” said L. Perumal, Joint Director of Agriculture, Tirunelveli.
All waterfalls at Courtallam viz. Main Falls, Five Falls and Old Falls were flowing menacingly following the overnight rains along the Western Ghats. Consequently, the policemen posted near the waterfalls prevented the small number of visitors coming to the waterfalls to take bath. However, the situation improved around noon as the flood subsided and the tourists were allowed to have bath.
Following the overnight rains, Collector Sandeep Nanduri declared a holiday for schools and colleges while the scheduled examinations for Plus One and the Manonmaniam Sundaranar University’s internal and practical examinations were conducted as planned.
Rainfall in the district (in mm): Papanasam Dam – 190, Ramanadhi Dam – 130, Gadananadhi Dam – 110, Servalar Dam – 102, Shencottai – 101, Gundar Dam – 98, Tenkasi – 89.30, Manimutharu Dam – 67.60, Ambasamudrm – 66.90, Aayikudi – 64, Nanguneri – 60, Karuppanadhi Dam – 55, Kodumudiyar and Adavinainar Dams – 50, Cheranmahadevi – 46, Nanguneri – 45.20, Nambiyar Dam – 38, Tirunelveli – 31.30, Sankarankovil – 25, Radhapuram – 13 and Sivagiri – 9.20.
