Officials asked to complete desilting work on time

Trichy: Senior officials from the agricultural engineering department inspected desilting work of C and D irrigation and drainage channels across delta districts on Wednesday. They urged district-level officials to complete the work ahead of opening of Mettur dam on June 12.Chief engineer T Chandrasekar inspected progress of work in Tiruvarur district, while superintendent engineers G Amuthan (special schemes), Shanthi Sundar Raman (schemes) and P Ravichandran (land development) reviewed work in Thanjavur, Mayiladuthurai, and Nagapattinam districts respectively.C and D channels are secondary irrigation channels that branch off from primary A and B channels, which distribute Cauvery river water. The agricultural engineering department undertakes desilting of C and D channels every year, while water resources department desilts A and B channels. Rural development and panchayat raj department handles desilting of E, F, and G channels.This year, the agricultural engineering department is desilting approximately 2,375 kilometres of C and D channels at Rs10 crores. The work aims to ensure smooth distribution of Cauvery water for kuruvai and samba paddy cultivation seasons. With less than a month remaining for opening of Mettur dam, Tamil Nadu govt has directed all three departments to complete maintenance work at the earliest.