Water Forum delegates visit village near Tindivanam

VILLUPURAM: Twenty-three delegates of the World Water Forum visited Villukkam in Tindivanam taluk on Tuesday to get firsthand information about the involvement of the local community in the water management system.
The delegates were happy with the way in which the officials and the residents were coordinating to achieve the common goal. They felt that what could not be accomplished even through government orders could be so effectively achieved with the cooperation of the people. Pat for departments
The delegates said it was a matter of pride that eight departments were coordinating among themselves to fulfil the requirements of the people, and such a unity of purpose was hard to find even in developed countries.
The departments that have come together for the project are agriculture, agriculture engineering, agriculture marketing, horticulture, fisheries, animal husbandry and public works.
Collector R. Palanisamy, who accompanied the delegates, gave an account of the working of the World Bank-aided IAMWARM (Irrigated Agriculture Modernization and Water Bodies Restoration and Management) project.
He said the project had two other components: “WARRAM” (Watershed and Agricultural Resources Re-engineering and Management project); and “KOODAM” that laid stress on a people-friendly approach. Under the IAMWARM project, micro-irrigation and System of Rice Intensification were being promoted to expand the area under cultivation and to get better yield.