Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay opened the sluice gates of the Stanley Reservoir at Mettur in Salem district on September 1, releasing Cauvery water for Samba cultivation and drinking-water needs across the Cauvery delta.
The opening came nearly 80 days after the customary June 12 schedule, after inadequate rainfall and low reservoir storage delayed the release. The government has planned water supply for 45 days, until October 15, depending on storage and inflows.
Farmers, however, have urged Vijay to extend the release, arguing that 45 days may not be enough to sustain a long-duration paddy crop. They have also sought measures to divert surplus Mettur water to waterbodies in the Thalaivasal region.
The government has said officials will monitor storage and inflows, regulate the release according to irrigation needs and ensure water reaches tail-end areas. The development comes amid a continuing Tamil Nadu-Karnataka dispute over Cauvery water, with farmers also demanding more reliable upstream releases.
A Delayed Relief For Farmers
Vijay opened the Mettur sluices at around 11.30 am on Tuesday, marking his first opening of the historic reservoir as Chief Minister. He released the water by pressing the control button and offering flowers and grains to the flowing Cauvery water before interacting with farmers and receiving their petitions.
The initial discharge of 3,000 cusecs was subsequently planned to be increased to 7,000 cusecs. As of 8 am on September 1, the reservoir stood at 91.56 feet against its full level of 120 feet, with 54.45 TMC of water in storage and an inflow of 10,857 cusecs.
The release is expected to benefit nearly 16.05 lakh acres across 12 delta districts, including Thanjavur, Tiruvarur, Nagapattinam, Mayiladuthurai, Tiruchirappalli and Cuddalore. The government has asked farmers to use water judiciously, while district officials have been instructed to coordinate irrigation through rotational systems so that supplies reach the tail-end areas.
The timing, however, remains a concern. Mettur is traditionally opened on June 12 to support the agricultural cycle, but this year’s opening was postponed because the Cauvery basin received inadequate southwest monsoon rainfall and the reservoir did not have sufficient storage.
A normal irrigation season can run for about 230 days, from June 12 to January 28, requiring an estimated 330 TMC of water. This year’s September opening is only the fourth time in the dam’s 93-year history that delta irrigation has begun in September, according to The Indian Express. Farmers who met Vijay have therefore asked the government not to stop the release after 45 days.
Their concern is particularly acute in tail-end districts, where water can take days to arrive. Farmers in Nagapattinam had earlier warned that a 45-day release could leave crops without irrigation before the northeast monsoon arrives. P Kamal Ram, a farmer from Thalainayar, said such a schedule could leave crops without water for at least 15 days before the northeast monsoon.
Why 45 Days Is A Concern
The government has defended the 45-day schedule as a decision shaped by limited water availability. Water Resources Minister N Anand said the dam had held only 41.223 TMC at the beginning of the 2026-27 irrigation year, making continuous irrigation release impossible while maintaining the minimum reserve needed for drinking water.
He said improving inflows had now allowed the government to meet both drinking-water and irrigation requirements. The government has also said that water release will depend on storage and inflows, rather than being guaranteed at a fixed level throughout the 45 days.
Officials from the Agriculture and Farmers Welfare Department, Water Resources Department and district administrations have been asked to prepare for cultivation, advise farmers on suitable practices and ensure that every available drop produces the maximum irrigation benefit.
Farmers and opposition voices, however, say the problem cannot be solved through a short release alone. CPM state secretary P Shanmugam has argued that long-duration Samba paddy requires a substantially longer period of assured water and criticised the 45-day schedule.
In another development highlighting the depth of farmer anxiety, more than 100 farmers were detained in Trichy on September 1 while preparing to travel to New Delhi to petition the President over regular monthly releases of Cauvery water from Karnataka. Farmer leader P Ayyakkannu said the available water and limited Mettur release were insufficient for Samba cultivation and argued that water was needed for at least 90 days.
The Surplus Water Question
Farmers’ demands extend beyond the immediate irrigation season. Those who met Vijay also sought government action to divert surplus water from Mettur to waterbodies in the Thalaivasal region. The demand reflects a larger concern over how Tamil Nadu can store and reuse excess water when reservoir levels are high, rather than allowing valuable water to flow away without strengthening local water security.
There is already a broader surplus-water network in the Salem region, including efforts to pump Mettur water towards lakes and tanks. Farmers and water activists have also recently sought the diversion of surplus Mettur water to revive the long-dry Panamarathupatti Lake.
Salem Corporation Commissioner Lalithaditya Neelam said restoration work was being planned again after an earlier tender expired, while noting that bringing Mettur surplus water to the lake had been a long-standing demand.
The Cauvery dispute with Karnataka adds another layer to the issue. Tamil Nadu has continued to pursue its claims before the Cauvery Water Management Authority and the Supreme Court, while arguing that Karnataka must provide the state’s legally due share of water.
The state government says its legal and administrative efforts have secured directions for releases at Biligundlu during different periods. The Supreme Court has also been hearing Tamil Nadu’s concerns over the adequacy of Karnataka’s releases. For farmers, however, the dispute is ultimately measured not in legal orders or reservoir statistics, but in whether water reaches their fields when their crops need it.
The Logical Indian’s Perspective
The opening of Mettur Dam offers welcome relief to farmers who have already lost valuable time in the agricultural calendar, but opening the gates is only the beginning. Water security cannot depend solely on rainfall, interstate disputes or last-minute reservoir releases. The concerns raised by farmers deserve to be heard through sustained dialogue between the state government, agricultural communities and neighbouring states.
At the same time, farmers’ requests for longer releases and better use of surplus water highlight the need for long-term planning: restoring local waterbodies, improving groundwater recharge, reducing wastage and adopting water-efficient farming practices can make communities more resilient.
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