Bank to give $100 mn for Cauvery delta in Tamil Nadu
Chennai, June 10, 2016, DHNS:
The Asian Development Bank (ADB) on Thursday said it has approved $100-million loan to strengthen irrigation system and water management in the Cauvery delta in Tamil Nadu.
The delta river basin is a critical source of water for agriculture, in both Tamil Nadu and neighbouring states including Karnataka, but a lack of investment over many years has left irrigation systems unable to meet the demand and increasingly vulnerable to floods and droughts.
Much of India is currently reeling from its worst drought in decades, sparked by an extreme El Niño weather pattern, and the forecast of above average monsoon rain in 2016 because of La Niña system heightens flood risks.
“The Vennar irrigation network is no longer able to meet the needs of many of its poor farmers particularly in the coastal areas, and the climate extremes that have been battering the country are expected to worsen which means there is a pressing need to upgrade it”, said Manjula Amerasinghe, Project Management Specialist in ADB’s South Asia Department. According to him, this project will support both physical improvements and stronger water management, giving a significant boost to the lives of coastal communities who often go without sufficient irrigation water.
The delta river basin is a critical source of water for agriculture, in both Tamil Nadu and neighbouring states including Karnataka, but a lack of investment over many years has left irrigation systems unable to meet the demand and increasingly vulnerable to floods and droughts.
Much of India is currently reeling from its worst drought in decades, sparked by an extreme El Niño weather pattern, and the forecast of above average monsoon rain in 2016 because of La Niña system heightens flood risks.
“The Vennar irrigation network is no longer able to meet the needs of many of its poor farmers particularly in the coastal areas, and the climate extremes that have been battering the country are expected to worsen which means there is a pressing need to upgrade it”, said Manjula Amerasinghe, Project Management Specialist in ADB’s South Asia Department. According to him, this project will support both physical improvements and stronger water management, giving a significant boost to the lives of coastal communities who often go without sufficient irrigation water.
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