Hidden water channels in TN can aid interlinking: Study

By Staff
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Google Oneindia News

Tiruchirapalli, Sep 1 (UNI) There are many abandoned or buried river systems in the state that could be used as potential channels for interlinking rivers in Tamil Nadu, a remote sensing study by the Bharatidasan University here has found.

The study, conducted by a team of scientists from the Centre for Remote Sensing(CRS) of the University's School of Geo-Sciences, revealed with the help of remote sensing photographs the origin and course the Bay of Bengal-bound rivers of the state took over the ages.

CRS Director and Team Leader S M Ramasamy told UNI, the study found river Cauvery had initially flowed along the Hogenekkal-Dharmapuri-Ambur-Vaniyambadi-Walajapet-Tiruvallur, meeting the sea towards the north of Chennai about 3,000 years ago.

Rigorous earth movements changed the course of the river which then flowed along the now Stanley Reservoir about 2,700 years ago.

Due to frequent storm surges at its confluence along Cuddalore coast and the opening of a major North-South Earth Crack (fault) between the now Stanley Reservoir and Erode, the river Cauvery changed track and started flowing via South via Erode, Karur and Tiruchirapalli about 2,300 years back.

For the fourth time, the river took a different course due to land uplift in the southern part of Thanjavur Delta and flowed along its current path of Coleroon River around 750 years ago.

The study will help address the problems raised during debates on river interlinking, Dr Ramaswamy said.

The findings would help make river interlinking cost effective and aid in impounding water thereby reducing the need for more canals and excavation for such a project, he added.

Rrivers such as Palar, Ponnaiyar, Pudukottai Vellar, Ambuliar and Agniar later took the course of the river Cauvery, Dr Ramasamy said. Much like the River Cauvery, river Vaigai, too, changed course to the North from along the River Gundar. It now meets the sea near Mandapam. Other water channels like Pudukkottai Vellar and Manimuthar too had undergone change of course over the ages.

The study also hints river Cauvery could be diverted and made to flow along Chennai by constructing a tunnel between Hogenekkal and Vaniyambadi. This diversion would benefit drought-prone areas of Kancheepuram and Chengalpattu.

In case, tunnelling on Hogenekkal-Vaniyambadi sector would not feasible, the Cauvery would be partly diverted from Stanley Reservoir to Sattanur Reservoir, the study suggested.

A regulator could be constructed at Vembanur along Pudukkottai-Vellar river and a canal dug up along Vembanur-Poonamaravati-Sendalappatti upto northwest of Madurai to link Cauvery with Vaigai to distribute water to arid areas of Sivagangai and Ramanathapuram, Dr Ramasamy added.

UNI

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