Declare Erode dist drought-hit, demand farmers

They made this representation in a meeting organised in the wake of suicides by two turmeric farmers following crop failure, to prevent such tragedy hereafter. Tamil Nadu Vivasayigal Sangangalin Koottiyakkam president, P K  Deivasigamani, said that they have asked the district administration to give a compensation of Rs 30 lakh for the family of farmer Muthusamy (70) who committed suicide in his farm on Friday and government job for a family member.

Stating that a district that receive less than 51 per cent of the normal rainfall can be declared as drought-hit, he said, “Erode has received a mere 28 per cent rainfall. So, we want the state government to give a compensation of Rs 1 lakh for an acre of turmeric cultivation, Rs 80,000 for an acre sugarcane and Rs 30,000 per paddy,” he said. “The collector said that he would make a recommendation to the government in this connection,” he said. District collector S Prabakar also explained that water could be released in Kalingarayan Canal only for 28 days - against the scheduled release for four-and-a-half months - due to the fast depleting water level in Bhavani Sagar Dam. 

The Collector said that a recommendation has been sent to the government to release water from Upper Bhavani dam to Bhavani Sagar, so that water could be released from the latter for irrigation in Kalingarayan Canal. However Deivasigamani said that possibility of saving turmeric plants on 15,000 acres with water from Kalingarayan Canal was remote as the crops dried.