Some relief as Cauvery begins to flow

Even as residents of Tiruchi and Srirangam expressed joy over the Cauvery water crossing Tiruchi, it has brought temporary relief to water managers of Tiruchi, which is reeling under severe water crisis.

On expectation that water might reach Tiruchi on Sunday, several enthusiastic residents living along the sides of Cauvery waited from early morning to see the flow of water. It finally reached Amma Mandapam around 11 am. Seeing the water in the Cauvery after about 10 months, the residents celebrated the occasion by offering flowers. Some of them even went a step ahead by performing puja, apparently seeking the divine intervention to sustain the water flow in the Cauvery. Though the initial flow was filled with froth, youngsters went ahead and took bath in it.

K. Raman of Melavasal in Srirangam, said Cauvery water was the lifeline of people and farmers of Tamil Nadu. He was delighted to see water flow after a long gap.

The arrival of water, has brought temporary relief to the officials of Tiruchi City Corporation, who were facing tough time in supplying water to its residents due to rapid dip in the groundwater level on the river bed of Cauvery at Kambarasampettai. It has four head works, besides 37 bore wells in the river to pump out water to the residents of Tiruchi. Since the water went down to 45 feet, the Corporation had sunk 15 additional bore wells recently to augment its resources.

Officials are of the view that if the flow is maintained for a week, it will help the sources to recharge about 80%.

A senior official of the Tiruchi Corporation told The Hindu that the flow was expected to continue for a week. If that happened, it would take care of water supply for about four to six weeks. The situation could be managed until the onset of North-east monsoon, he added.

But, the speed of flow was said to have slowed down on Sunday evening following drastic reduction in quantum of water from Mettur dam. The outflow was reduced to 503 cusecs from 7000 cusecs on Saturday. However, the officials hoped that the water crisis could be managed with the current water flow.

Source:http://www.thehindu.com/news/cities/Tiruchirapalli/some-relief-as-cauvery-begins-to-flow/article19489712.ece