Kerala Water Resources minister Mathew Thomas resigns
Thiruvananthapuram, Nov 26 : Kerala Water Resources Minister Mathew T Thomas, a nominee of the Janata Dal (Secular) in the CPI(M)-led LDF government, on Monday submitted his resignation to Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan.
The move comes after the JD(S), a key partner in the LDF, Friday decided to replace Thomas with Chittur MLA K Krishnankutty.
Thomas handed over the resignation letter to Vijayan at the latter's official residence, Cliff House, this morning. "I have handed over my resignation letter to the chief minister. I am an MLA now," Thomas told reporters here.
On his performance as a minister in the last two and half years, Thomas said he cannot say he was fully satisfied, but was happy as he could take up various activities during his tenure in the water resources department.
Asked if he would stake claim for the post of the state party chief, Thomas said he had not put forward any such demand and had not listed any conditions for his resignation.
Thomas said he had functioned as the state president of the party and had helped it to grow. The party would not split and would remain in the LDF, he said.
The JD(S), headed by former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda, has three MLAs in the Kerala Assembly. The national leadership, which had met at Bengaluru last week, had decided to replace Thomas with Krishnankutty.
Senior JD(S) leaders from the state including Krishnankutty and C K Nanu, the other MLA, met Gowda and held discussions in Bengaluru after which the national leadership had announced the decision to replace Thomas.
The two factions led by Thomas and Krishnankutty have been at loggerheads for quite some time over the party's lone ministerial berth.
Krishnankutty is likely to be sworn in as minister Tuesday. The 13th session of the Kerala Assembly is also beginning Tuesday.
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Karnataka tanks hold strong water storage: Minister Boseraju
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Minister N S Boseraju on Tuesday said that minor irrigation tanks across the state are holding good water storage levels, with the 3,788 tanks under the department’s jurisdiction providing life-sustaining water to a large agricultural command area of approximately 4,45,009 hectares.
In a statement, the Minister for Minor Irrigation, Boseraju, said that according to the latest data released by the department, a vast majority of the 3,788 minor irrigation tanks in the state have maintained good water levels.
Detailing the storage status, the report said that even in peak summer, 165 tanks are full.
Additionally, 1,355 tanks have retained more than 51 per cent capacity, 1,143 tanks have water levels up to 50 per cent, and 959 tanks are at roughly 30 per cent storage capacity.
District-wise, Davanagere leads the state in water storage, with 27 tanks remaining full even during summer. Chikkamagaluru follows closely with 46 full tanks, indicating strong water retention.
Other top-performing districts include Hassan, Tumakuru, and Kolar.
Boseraju, who also holds the portfolio of Science and Technology, said 1,184 tanks are being actively filled through 145 tank-filling lift irrigation projects under the Minor Irrigation Department.
He attributed the strong water retention to good monsoon rainfall and effective water management strategies of the government.
“It is encouraging to see such a substantial volume of water stored across our minor irrigation tanks by the end of March, remaining largely intact even as summer progresses. The fact that 1,355 tanks are nearly full and 165 tanks are brimming is a testament to the success of our tank-filling programmes and rejuvenation initiatives,” he said.
“By ensuring a continuous flow of water to these tanks through lift irrigation projects across departments, as well as supplying treated and surface water to the Bayaluseeme districts, we have taken proactive measures to prevent them from drying out during the summer,” the minister said.
According to him, these data points confirm that efforts to build a water-secure Karnataka are yielding strong results at the grassroots level.
“This water wealth preserved in our tanks will bring direct benefits to lakhs of farmers across the 4,45,009-hectare command area,” he added.
