The first rains of the Northeast monsoon are starting to pay off for Tamil Nadu. Over the past ten days, almost 2,000 more irrigation tanks across the state have filled to at least 75 % of their capacity.
Water‑Resources officials say that on October 15 only 2,622 tanks were above the 75‑percent mark. By Saturday the number jumped to 4,556 – a rise of 1,934 tanks. That’s a big improvement over last year, when 3,197 tanks had reached the same level by October 21, 2024.
Full‑capacity tanks are most common in Kanniyakumari (396), Tiruvannamalai (266), Ranipet (243), Madurai (241), Thanjavur (189) and Villupuram (137). Villupuram leads the state’s biggest jump, with 131 tanks hitting full storage, followed by Madurai (120) and Tiruvannamalai (111). Districts around Chennai—Chengalpattu and Kancheepuram—also saw gains, with 50 and 62 tanks now full.
The surge reflects a well‑distributed rainfall pattern that began with the Northeast monsoon on October 16. In addition to fully filled tanks, another 2,274 tanks now hold between 76 % and 99 % of their capacity. Kanniyakumari tops this group with 788 tanks, followed by Thanjavur (263), Madurai (220), Pudukottai (144) and Tenkasi (109).
Madurai has added 189 tanks into this range this week, while Kanniyakumari added 122 and Thanjavur added 95. Officials say that, with the India Meteorological Department forecasting above‑average rainfall for the rest of the season, more tanks should reach full capacity soon. Higher storage will lift groundwater levels and reduce the need for borewells.
For farmers, the better water levels mean less drilling and a steadier irrigation supply—especially valuable now that the state already offers free power to help keep costs down.
Source: ianslive
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