Groundwater level has increased by 0.6 metres
Rs. 20 crore has been allocated for supplying water across the State, says TWAD Board managing director The groundwater level has increased from 18.10 metres below ground level (pre-monsoon) to 17.5
Rs. 20 crore has been allocated for supplying water across the State, says TWAD Board managing director The groundwater level has increased from 18.10 metres below ground level (pre-monsoon) to 17.5
Result of failure of monsoons in 2012 Groundwater level in the district has gone down – drastically in a few places - thanks to the failure of monsoons in 2012. Recent reports with the Tamil Nadu Water Supply and Drainage Board suggests that the average drop in water level is five metres in the district. The Board monitors water supply twice a year – before and after monsoon in May and January – using the 38 observation wells it has dug across the district, covering all the 12 panchayat unions.
Compensation to be credited to their savings bank accounts The State government has sanctioned Rs.60 crore for the distribution of compensation to 1.28 lakh farmers who suffered more than 50 per cent crop loss due to drought, according to Collector N.Venkatachalam. Presiding over a special drought relief meeting at the Collectorate here on Thursday, he said crops on 1.83 lakh acres, including paddy covering 9,919 acres, were damaged.
The technology is used for laying “all-weather roads” From October 4, 2002, when the first ‘plastic road’ was laid on Lenin Street, Kovilpatti in Tuticorin district, the technology of using waste plastic with stone for laying roads has come a long way. Developed by the Department of Chemistry of Thiagarajar College of Engineering, Madurai, in 2001 and patented in 2002, the technology has been literally going places. It is now used in several other States, including Kerala, West Bengal and Himachal Pradesh, to lay “all-weather” roads.
Rs.7.7 lakh to be spent for setting up plant The Cumbum Municipality plans to tap solar energy on a large scale to trim its power bill. Initially, solar power would be provided to the municipal office, municipal maternity hospital and the municipal abattoir, said Chairman T.Shiva Kumar. Presiding over a council meeting here on Tuesday evening, he said Rs.7.7 lakh would be spent on setting up a solar power plant for the municipal office and for its computer centre, and Rs.4 lakh would be spent on a solar plant for the maternity home and the municipal abattoir.
The State government will soon come out with a comprehensive organic agriculture policy, according to K. Ramasamy, Vice- Chancellor, Tamil Nadu Agriculture University (TNAU). Addressing the launch of ‘SUSTAIN,’ a Public Private Partnership initiative to deploy innovative drying and storage technology to farmers, Dr. Ramasamy said here on Tuesday that various components of the policy, including the formation of a Department of Sustainable Organic Agriculture and establishment of a Directorate for Organic Agriculture, were under preparation.
The Tamizhaga Vivasaigal Sangham plans to organise a protest in two weeks against the proposed bypass road from Kangeyampalayam to Mettupalayam. State president of the sangham M.R. Sivasamy told presspersons here on Tuesday that he was also seeking the support of political parties and the protestors would stage a picketing here in the second week of May.
Rs. 100-crore project to be completed by mid-2014; will produce power from solid waste generated in Tambaram and Pallavaram Preliminary civil works for a waste-to-energy power plant began at Venkatamangalam village on Monday. The non-incineration facility will produce power from solid waste generated in Tambaram and Pallavaram municipalities. A bhoomi pooja was performed at the 50-acre site at Venkatamangalam, located around 15 kilometres from Tambaram and coming under Kattankulathur panchayat union, Kancheepuram district.
Allocation for crop loans, farm mechanisation in Namakkal The Annual Credit Plan (ACP) for Namakkal District for the financial year 2013-14 at an outlay of Rs. 2,565 crore that will cover 10,93,364 borrowers in the priority sectors was released by District Collector D. Jagannathan here on Tuesday. He said that the targeted credit for this year is Rs. 510.1 crore (24.82 per cent) more than the target for 2012-13 that was fixed at Rs. 2,054.9 crore.
To make solar power generation a mass movement In a bid to encourage more households to set up solar power plants, Chief Minister Jayalalithaa on Thursday announced an investment subsidy of Rs. 20,000 per KW. She said it was part of her government’s plan to make solar power generation a mass movement. She also said 11 lakh new electricity connections covering houses, agriculture, commercial and industries would be given in the current year.
The total area covered under the micro irrigation systems in the district has more than doubled during the last two years as many farmers are adopting effective water management practices in the wake of the drought. In a period of three years starting from 2007-08, the farming community in the district installed drip and sprinkler systems to cover only about 3,500 hectares. But in the last two years, farmers installed micro irrigation systems covering more than 6,000 hectares.