The Tamil Maanila Congress would take up the cause of the farmers of Cauvery delta region by staging a massive demonstration in Thanjavur on October 1, said TMC president G.K. Vasan here on Tuesday.
Mr. Vasan who was touring the district as part of ‘Makkalai noki’ programme, in a brief chat, told reporters that Karnataka government’s refusal to release water in Cauvery was unfortunate. “I strongly condemn the attitude of the neighbouring State. We are not seeking favours. It is our right,” he stressed.
The NDA government at the Centre should intervene immediately as thousands of farmers’ depended on the water for irrigation in Thanjavur, Tiruvarur and Nagapattinam districts.
To a query on raising Mullaperiyar reservoir storage level, he said that the State government should impress upon the Centre and get it raised to 152 feet, which alone would save the southern districts of Tamil Nadu.
‘Jallikatti’
Permission should be granted to ‘jallikattu’during the Pongal celebrations.
The Centre should declare it as a “national festival” and the State government had a major role to get the ban lifted, Mr. Vasan said.
Lauding the West Bengal government for releasing the files on Netaji Subash Chandra Bose, he said that the Centre should preserve such documents.
Drought relief
A group of villagers in Madurai East block and from Melavalavu near here told Mr. Vasan that they had lost their crops due to non-availability of water.
“We are looking for relief from the State government which alone would save us from ending up in loss,” they said.
After unfurling the party flag at wayside points, he also spoke at a couple of villages.