VICE-CHAIRMAN Region 2 (Pomeroon/Supenaam), Mr. Vishnu Samaroo has said the Drainage and Irrigation (D&I) Department of the Regional Administration has started to release water from its conservancies into irrigation canals in some rice growing areas along the Essequibo Coast so that farmers can begin preparing their fields for sowing.

According to him, the process in the La Belle Alliance area began on October 27, while at Henrietta first depth, it was done on October 29.
Samaroo said irrigating of rice lands in the Anna Regina low area (first depth) began on November 14.
The Vice-Chairman, who has responsibility for the D&I Section, said irrigation is ongoing in the south end (Perseverance to Riverstown) in the first depth(low lands).
Samaroo said, at the Tapakuma Main Conservancy, the door was lowered 12 inches as from Thursday, November 15, to continue irrigation to fields in the low lands.
He also reported that the Yankee Main Canal regulator, aback of La Union, was closed on Friday in an effort to raise the level of water in the area so fields can be flooded by gravity flow.
Samaroo said, in the South end, all regulators are opened along with the South access to irrigate fields but some farmers in the Abram Zuil to Dartmouth areas have vandalised fixtures to get water to their fields in the low lands.
He said farmers between Perseverance and Riverstown are also guilty of such vandalism but are having problems to feed water into their fields via gravity flow because of the low level in the main canal.
Samaroo said no irrigation is available to the downstream State farms, currently, because of the current dry weather and the height of the rice lands. He also pointed out that Cozier, along with areas from Bounty Hall and Somerset and Berks, will not be irrigated at this time.
The Region 2 D&I Department warned farmers not to interfere with government structures to get water into their fields.
Samaroo said farmers should not waste water at this time, as the Dawa Pump will only be used for pumping from the Pomeroon River to sustain fields already sown.