Newsletter No. 60;
IRBMS
available in the remaining 64% of the area, thus December. The dry season is from February to July.
keeping most of peninsular India water-starved The
compared to other parts of the country. Slowly the decreased about 60% in 2016.
average
annual
rainfall
has
gradually
scarcity of water has reached in the Himalayas and
its foothills. Himachal Pradesh, Uttarakhand, Rice cultivation is mostly done in the Cauvery
North of West Bengal are slowly facing the water delta zone comprising seven districts: Thanjavur,
crisis. The action from Govt. is very myopic. There Thiruvarur, Nagapattinam, Cuddalore, Tiruchi,
is no comprehensive policy or planning in this Pudukottai and Ariyalur. The Stanley reservoir in
time of political slugfest. Mettur, the lifeline of the Cauvery delta, has only
These
crises are
and 7% water; half of the combined water supply
diplomatic crisis. When honorable Supreme court schemes of the government, which cater to 10
is trying to resolve Kaveri water dispute between districts, depend on the Cauvery. At end-March,
Karnataka and Tamilnadu, at that same time Tista the level at Mettur too has dropped to 6.5 tmcft
water agreement between India and Bangladesh is (thousand million cubic feet), against a capacity of
slowly turning into a major diplomatic crisis. These 93.47 tmcft. The last time the level dipped this low
are just the beginning of the long summer water was in June 2013, when it touched an all-time low
problems, many more are offing. of 2.89 tmcft.
snowballing
into
large
scale
political
It was said that the harvest in this year will be the
NEWS
highest. In mid-March, when the state received
2016-17 drought in Tamilnadu
light showers it seemed that situation will be
under control; but since then, the temperature has
Drought in Tamilnadu in 2016-17 is a disaster continued to soar. The drought has impacted every
among the farmers of Tamilnadu. This drought has crop, be it horticulture or cash crops such as cane
happened due to the worst rainfall in the last 140 and turmeric, water-intensive one like rice, and
yrs. of the state. The state receives three distinct plantations, including tea and coconut. The CM of
periods of rainfall: advance rainfall in August; Tamilnadu further announced that Rs. 5465.00 per
rainfall from the tropical cyclones during the acre will be provided for farmers who suffered 33%
Retreat of Monsoons in October-November and loss sowing paddy and other irrigational crops, and
the North East monsoon during the months of
2
Integrated River Basin Management Society