Mayiladuthurai:Farmers in Mayiladuthurai district on Wednesday demanded the Tamil Nadu government to declare the district as drought-hit and provide a financial relief of Rs 15,000 per acre without any conditions. They claimed that they are facing severe water scarcity for the ongoing Samba paddy cultivation.

“Since water is unavailable, we request the Tamil Nadu government to declare this district as drought-hit and provide a subsidy of Rs 15,000 per acre to the farmers without any conditions,” Mayiladuthurai district farmers’ president Rajesh told reporters here.

He said cultivators have initiated direct sowing and planting for the Samba season after suffering massive losses during the previous Kuruvai season. Farmers were forced to abandon Kuruvai cultivation across lakhs of acres because water was not released from the Mettur reservoir, he added.

Despite the Mettur dam currently holding 45 TMC of water, agricultural lands in the district remain parched and the fields have developed cracks due to inadequate water supply, he said.

Rajesh urged the state government to secure its rightful share of water as per the directives of the Cauvery Water Management Authority. He noted that agricultural activity in the region will only be possible if this water is secured.