The weather in Tamil Nadu in the winter months of October to December is characterized by rains from the northeast monsoon. These three months therefore are a crucial period in deciding the weather of Tamil Nadu and the possible changes in conditions in the coming seasons. Farmers too depend entirely on the weather of Tamil Nadu to be perfect so it can get them adequate rain for their paddy crops.
But the rapidly spreading climatic change played havoc in the just ended 2012 and made the weather in Tamil Nadu during the usual wet winter months, completely dry! After a dismal spell of southwest monsoon in 2012, hopes from the northeast monsoons to improve the weather of Tamil Nadu were shattered too. Weather forecasters at Skymet say that Tamil Nadu seems to be headed for one of its worst monsoons shortfalls. While figures show that Chennai faced a 30% deficient in rainfall, Madurai is at 45%. The whole of Tamil Nadu on the other hand should have got 413.6mm of rain but has received only 356.6mm, rainfall short by 14%. This serious rain deficit in Tamil has alarmed many farmers who have already decided to shift to other varieties of crops that require lesser water. Scientists say it’s shocking to see how climate change in India and the world is showing its deviations so rapidly. They say that there was no rain deficit in Tamil Nadu till 2003 when the state received excellent rainfall. This rain deficit in Tamil Nadu in 2012 therefore will require some strategic planning from the Chennai Metro Water Supply and Sewerage Board as the water levels in the reservoirs are about half of what they were in 2011, in the month of December.
Chennai is likely to face an acute drinking water shortage in the summer of 2013 since the tardy north-east monsoon has failed to replenish the city's reservoirs. The WRD (water resources department) stated in the last week of December 2012, a shortfall of more than 6,000mcft of water. Agriculture and forest departments are now identifying supplementary catchment areas to get water. Water experts in the state have also pitched for restoring lakes and other water bodies as a more sustainable solution.
It’s appalling to see that even though the capital of the state, Chennai has more than 3,000 water bodies (including 1500 lakes and 29 water tanks), water deficit in Tamil Nadu has become so common. Currently, water deficit in Tamil Nadu’s reservoirs is close to 78% lower than its normal level. Scientist and Dr. NVK Chakravarty at Skymet Weather says, "strict monitoring mechanism must be put in place to ensure that all buildings have rainwater harvesting systems and rain deficit in Tamil Nadu can be avoided."
