CM Vijay holds a meeting on desilting water bodies

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay on Wednesday chaired a review meeting at the Secretariat in Chennai with ministers and officials regarding the granting of permission to desilt water bodies for the welfare of farmers and potters.

According to an official report, there are 40,000 lakes and ponds in Tamil Nadu under the control of the Water Resources, Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Department. Before the onset of the North-East Monsoon, the silt deposited in these water bodies will be removed and provided free of cost to farmers, potters and for domestic use. This will also help increase the storage capacity of water bodies.

Farmers and potters have been asked to take advantage of this opportunity to remove mud free of charge under the supervision of officials of the respective departments. They can register and apply through tnesevai.tn.gov.in and the respective Tahsildars will grant them permission within 10 days of the application, the release said.

The District Collectors have been asked to publish the list of lakes and ponds for the year 2026-27 in the District Gazetteer to ensure effective implementation of the scheme. They were also instructed to monitor the implementation as per existing rules and guidelines.

Rural Development and Water Resources Minister N. Anand, Finance Minister KA Sengottaiyan, Chief Secretary M. Sai Jumar and other senior government officials were present in the meeting.

Published – 21 May 2026 0:42 IST