Farmers and residents of Thalavadi taluk urged the State government to conduct a feasibility study for a lift irrigation scheme from the Moyar river to address the drinking water shortage and improve groundwater recharge in the hill region.

The demand comes amid acute water scarcity following inadequate rainfall over the past two years.

In several parts of the taluk, groundwater levels have fallen sharply. Residents said borewells, which earlier yielded water at depths of 200 to 500 feet, now have to be drilled to a depth of 900 to 1,300 feet, with no guarantee of adequate yield.

Several villages are, therefore, dependent on daily water supply arranged by the panchayats. The situation is particularly severe in Bynapuram, Diginarai, Arulavadi and Thalavadi panchayats, where residents are sometimes forced to travel to neighbouring villages to fetch water.

Thalavadi, located along the Tamil Nadu–Karnataka border and largely within the Sathyamangalam Tiger Reserve, has 28 revenue villages, 11 village panchayats and 19 tribal hamlets, with a population of about 70,000. The taluk has 142 tanks and ponds, including nine spread over over 10 hectares, 23 over five hectares and 19 over three hectares.

Environmental activist Shuail Ahmed said these waterbodies could be better utilised to conserve rainwater and recharge groundwater. According to Mr. Ahmed, rainwater runoff from the hill region often flows towards the Chikkahole and Suvarnavathy reservoirs in Karnataka’s Chamarajanagar district.

The two reservoirs have a combined capacity of about 2.5 tmcft. He said strengthening waterbodies of more than three hectares in Thalavadi and restoring their feeder channels could help retain rainwater locally and improve groundwater levels.

Residents, however, say a sustainable solution would require an additional water source. They have proposed drawing water from the Moyar river, about 9 km away, through a lift irrigation scheme.

Under the proposal, a check dam could be constructed and water lifted to Gettavadi, from where it could be distributed to the panchayats using gravity. The water could also be used to replenish local tanks and ponds and support groundwater recharge.

Farmer S. Manickam said the project, if found feasible, could benefit more than 40,000 people. “The project would provide a long-term source of drinking water and also help replenish local waterbodies and groundwater,” he said.

Farmers and residents have urged the government to conduct a detailed feasibility study to assess the availability of water in the Moyar, the technical feasibility of the scheme and its environmental implications.

Sources in the district administration said an official team is likely to visit the hill region to assess the proposal and prepare a report.

Published - August 19, 2026 06:48 pm IST