Farmers body challenges Sarabanga Lift Irrigation Project

MADURAI

Cauvery Vivasayigal Sangam challenged the ₹565-crore Sarabanga Lift Irrigation Project, which will see surplus water from Mettur reservoir diverted to the dry lakes in the Sarabanga basin in Salem district, before the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court on Monday.

The petitioner, P.R. Pandian, president of the Sangam, said that the government had passed an order to divert water directly from Mettur dam to develop new ayacuts irrigating 4,238 acres of land in Edappadi, Sankagiri, Omalur and Mettur taluks, which were not covered under Mettur Irrigation Project.

The government’s move would affect delta farmers who were already suffering due to lack of adequate water in the Cauvery. Moreover, records on the availability of water in Mettur reservoir in the last few decades would show that there had never been excess water, the petitioner said.

He said that the proposed project was vague and would turn the delta region into a desert. The farmers of the region would be deprived of their livelihood. No expert body was constituted to study if the water could be diverted to develop new ayacuts, and also there was no debate in the Assembly to know the views of the members representing the delta region, he said, and sought a stay on the project.

Taking up the public interest litigation petition for hearing, a Division Bench of Justices M. Sathyanarayanan and P. Rajamanickam issued notices to the Central and State governments, and adjourned the case till August 3.