Chennai, (IANS): The Regional Meteorological Centre
(RMC) issued an orange alert for Tamil Nadu on November 26 as an upper-level
cyclonic circulation is expected to form over the South Andaman Sea and its
surrounding areas within the next 24 hours.
This is likely to develop into a low-pressure area in the
southeast Bay of Bengal by November 23.
The weather department has predicted heavy rain in Tamil
Nadu, Puducherry and its Karaikkal regions on November 25, followed by very
heavy rainfall on November 26.
Several schools in Ramanathapuram and Nagapattinam
districts were closed on Thursday due to heavy rainfall.
Rameswaram and Pamban in Ramanathapuram district
experienced significant rainfall on Wednesday, with Rameswaram recording 41 cm
and Pamban 19 cm.
A cloudburst in the Pamban and Thangachimadam areas on
Wednesday resulted in 24 cm of rain within two hours, causing heavy inundation
in these locations.
Other parts of Ramanathapuram district also witnessed
substantial downpours, with the overall district rainfall averaging 10 cm.
In Tirunelveli district, hilly areas along the Western
Ghats, such as Nalumukku, Oothu, Kakkachi, and Manjolai, recorded rainfall of
16.6 cm, 15.4 cm, 13.6 cm, and 9.8 cm, respectively, on Wednesday.
Heavy rain inundated thousands of acres of farmland,
affecting Samba crops in Tiruvarur, Mayiladuthurai, and Nagapattinam districts.
Farmers reported severe water stagnation, which has
destroyed crops in several areas.
Murugesan Perumal, a 52-year-old farmer from Thanjavur,
said heavy rain flooded Samba paddy fields, devastating thousands of acres of
crops.
He attributed the damage to the lack of proper de-silting
of irrigation canals, particularly the Ottai Vaical canal, which serves as both
an irrigation channel and a stormwater drain.
Farmers revealed that approximately 500 acres of farmland
connected to the canal were submerged due to vegetation overgrowth and
accumulated silt.
It may be noted that from October 1 to November 15, Tamil
Nadu received 276 mm of rainfall during the Northeast Monsoon.
Coimbatore recorded the highest rainfall at 418 mm, which
is 67 per cent above normal.
While 17 districts, including Chennai, reported excess
rainfall, others recorded deficits.
With the state receiving consistent rainfall since the
onset of the monsoon on October 17, nearly 90 reservoirs across the state are
over 60 per cent full.
Tamil Nadu’s reservoirs currently hold 143.804 tmcft
(thousand million cubic feet) of water, which is 64.11 per cent of their total
capacity of 224.297 tmcft.
This is a significant increase compared to the same
period last year when storage levels stood at 79.514 tmcft (35.58 per cent).
The Mettur reservoir, a critical water source, has a
storage level of 62,140 mcft, a 384 per cent increase from 2023, while the
Bhavanisagar reservoir recorded 21,141 mcft, reflecting a 210 per cent rise
from last year.
