Thanjavur: Old irrigation structure gets facelift

THANJAVUR: A “drop cum siphon” (water falling into a well like structure and pass through a siphon below a road) constructed by the British in 1934, on Sakkara canal at Kalvirayanpettai near Thanjavur has been renovated and now used for irrigation-thanks to Kudimaramathu work taken up by farmers and PWD this year.

“Farmers of Kalvirayanpettai village deserve appreciation for the renovation of dilapidated structure. Now water is not only regulated and irrigated properly but also the work remains a success story of Kudimaramathu” said A .Murugesan, executive engineer, Grand Anicut canal system PWD on Thursday.

He told presspersons accompanying him that the canal now irrigates 4,640 acres in seven villages without a drop being wasted. The villages which benefit from the structure include Kalvirayanpettai, Alakudi, Sakkarasamantham, Seeralur, Pillaiyarnatham etc. Sakkara canal branches three, four, five and six cross Rajavari through this drop-cum-siphon. The canals remained silted up and hence water could not reach tail-end. "We took up the work at a cost of `30 lakh and completed under Kudimaramathu scheme," Murugesan said.

The irrigators association of Kalvirayanpettai village has 150 members. “The farmers contributed a sum of Rs 3 lakh as their share under Kudimaramathu and took active part in the work and thus could renovate an old structure,” said S. Rajadurai, president of the association and R. Palanisamy, former panchayat president and treasurer of the association.  

The executive engineer also said that 24 works were taken up in Grand Anicut canal division in Thanjavur district out of which three were canal works and 21 were lake and tank works. All works have been completed and water is flowing freely in canals and stored in lakes.

Another major de-silting work taken up by PWD this year is clean-up of Vadaseri canal.

The canal, branching out from Grand Anicut canal, runs to the distance of 16.70-km and has an ayacut of 6,570 acres in Soorakottai, Valamarkottai, Sembagapuram, Arumalaikottai, Murthiambalpuram and Neyvasal villages. The canal has been de-silted under PWD works at a cost of `14 lakh, he added.