As 4 districts have been destroyed due to the opening of Chatanur Dam without prior notice, PAM has asked the family to provide Rs.25,000. Founder Dr. Ramadasa made the request in the statement. Ramadoss also recalled the damage caused by the opening of the Chembarambakkam lake in 2015 during the AIADMK regime.
What is happening in Tamil Nadu has been proved once again that the government is not interested in the welfare of the people and the government is incapable of thinking. The people of Tiruvannamalai, Villupuram, Kallakurichi and Cuddalore districts were hit the hardest as 1.70 lakh cubic feet per second of water was released from the Chatanur Dam into the Tenpenna River in the middle of the night without any warning. This is the worst move by an irresponsible government and is condemnable.
Due to Cyclone Fenjal, which has formed in the Bay of Bengal and crossed the coast, many districts in Tamil Nadu are receiving unprecedented rainfall. As a result, the Tamil Nadu government, which should have taken steps to mitigate the effects of the lakes and ponds, has filled up the lakes and ponds and released 1.70 lakh cubic feet of water per second from Chatanur dam in Tiruvannamalai district into the Tenpenna river without any warning, multiplying the sufferings of the people many times over.
The water released from the Chatanur dam at 1.30 am caused havoc in 4 districts in the next few hours. The floods surrounded the prime areas including Sengam, Thandarampatu in Tiruvannamalai District, Manalurpet Municipality in Kallakurichi District, Thirukkoilur Municipality, Aragandanallur Municipality in Villupuram District, Tiruvenneynallur Municipality, Kuchipalayam in Cuddalore District, Melkumaramangalam Bulavanur, Kandarakottai, Jallipattu and hundreds of surrounding villages. It has entered tens of thousands of houses and caused huge damage.
The details of the release of water from the dam in the middle of the night are not known to the innocent people. In many places in Cuddalore district, people came to know about the details only after water entered the houses. After that, they all ran away from their homes thinking that it would be enough to save their lives. In the 4 districts along which Tenpenna River flows, every house in the areas located on the banks of the river has been flooded, causing a loss of Rs 2 lakh to Rs 10 lakh. Rescue teams are still unable to reach many villages, leaving people without even food.
In all the villages in 4 districts, tens of thousands of acres of crops including paddy, livestock like goats, cows and chickens got caught in the flood and were completely destroyed. It may take years for the people of the region to recover from these losses. It takes a few days to recover from the shock.
The Tenpennai River originates in Karnataka and reaches Chatanur via Bangalore, Hosur and Krishnagiri. From the starting point to the way to Chatanur Dam, torrents are formed due to heavy rains and the water and many tributaries including Bambaru join the Tenpenna River. Therefore, the amount of water coming to the Chatanur Dam has started increasing on Sunday. The engineers knew very well that the dam would fill up in the next few hours. South Penna can only hold one hundred thousand cubic feet of water per six seconds; The engineers of the dam also knew that if the water was released beyond that, it would be a disaster.
Accordingly, if water had been released from the Chatanur dam in a substantial amount since Sunday afternoon, such a huge destruction would not have occurred. But which master’s order were they waiting for? It is not known. In 2015, the DMK government, which had been justifying its failures by repeating and repeating the opening of the Sembarambakkam lake in the middle of the night, has now caused many times more disaster by opening the Chatanur dam in the middle of the night. This proves that DMK is a party that is not fit to rule. But the price paid for this is high.
With about 2.50 lakh cubic feet of water per second being released from the Chatanur dam into the Tenpenna river, the situation is worsening every hour. The government should take all necessary steps to bring the situation under control immediately. Chief Minister M.K.Stalin should apologize to the people of Tamil Nadu for opening the Chatanur Dam in the middle of the night and causing havoc. What was the reason behind the unannounced opening of Chatanur Dam? Who is at fault in this matter? The Tamil Nadu government should immediately order a high-level inquiry to find out.
All the families living in the flood affected areas should be given compensation of Rs.25,000 each.
There should be adequate compensation for damaged crops and dead livestock. The central government should immediately provide the relief funds requested by the Tamil Nadu government to carry out rescue and relief work in the rain & flood affected areas. Ramadoss has requested this.
