Ponnaniyar dam is nestled between Perumal Malai and Semmalai, the Kannuthu dam is situated at Elamanam village in Manapparai taluk; surplus Cauvery water is proposed to pumped from Mayanur barrage
The Water Resources Department has submitted a proposal to the State government seeking ₹83 lakh to take up a feasibility study and prepare a detailed project report (DPR) for pumping surplus waters in the Cauvery to Ponnaniyar and Kannuthu dams to stabilise irrigation in the ayacut areas fed by them.
The proposal envisages laying a pipeline for a distance of over 54 km to pump surplus water from the Mayanur barrage on the Cauvery to Ponnaniyar dam and the Kannuthu dam.
Set in sylvan surroundings, about 65 km from Tiruchi, Ponnaniyar dam is nestled between Perumal Malai and Semmalai. While the dam and its catchment area are located in Karur district, the ayacut area is spread over Mugavanur panchayat and neighbouring villages in Tiruchi district.
The dam was built in 1974 and rain flow from Kadavur region is its main water source. The catchment area is spread over 33.60 sq miles. The dam has a storage capacity of 120 million cubic feet (mcft) and has an aycut of about 2,100 acres in Mugavanur, Sekkanam, and Pazhayakottai villages.
Kannuthu dam, another small dam, is situated at Elamanam village in Manapparai taluk. It has a storage capacity of 56.16 mcft and has an ayacut of about 734 acres.
Over the past several years, both dams have got poor inflows leaving farmers high and dry. Farmers have long been clamouring for desilting of Ponnaniyar dam and for its canal.
Though the previous government had announced in December 2020 that a feasibility study on the project would be taken up at an estimated cost of ₹40 lakh, the initiative did not take off.
Seeking to give a push to the proposal now, School Education Minister Anbil Mahesh Poyyamozhi, accompanied by Collector V. Saravanan and senior WRD officials led by S.Sivakumar, Chief Engineer, WRD, Tiruchi Region, inspected the Ponnaniyar dam recently.
As Ponnaniyar is situated at an elevation of 195 metres, the feasibility of diverting the surplus waters of the Cauvery by pumping and other possible means are being explored to meet the demands of farmers in the Manapparai region. The WRD’s Plan Formulation Division has submitted a proposal to take up the detailed study for the project, Mr. Anbil Mahesh said after the inspection.
Rajya Sabha Member Salma, Manapparai MLA P. Abdul Samad and senior officials were present.
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