PRESS RELEASE Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Department As per the directive of Hon'ble Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu Thiru C. Joseph Vijay Guidelines for the restoration of water bodies by corporates / institutions / voluntary organisations / community-based organisations / educational institutions, and under G.O. (Ms.) No. 50 of the Industries Department, were released today (01.07.2026) at the Secretariat by the Hon'ble Minister for Rural Development and Water Resources, Thiru N. Anand. 1. Introduction: The Rural Development and Panchayat Raj (RD&PR) Department has jurisdiction over approximately 22,051 minor irrigation tanks and 69,777 ponds and water bodies (ooranies). Minor irrigation tanks are owned and maintained by Panchayat Unions, while ponds and ooranies are maintained by Village Panchayats. These water bodies are being restored through various government schemes including MGNREGS, the "Anaithu Grama Anna Marumalarchi Thittam" (AGAMT), and State-funded minor irrigation tank restoration schemes. However, a significant number of water bodies have not had their natural storage capacity fully restored and require further restoration and protection measures. The State's water resources are largely dependent on the monsoon; insufficient or failed rainfall leads to water scarcity, reduced groundwater recharge and drought conditions, adversely affecting agriculture and rural livelihoods. Hence, in support of Government efforts, the contributions of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) funds, NGOs, Community-Based Organisations (CBOs) and educational institutions can be leveraged to restore and protect water bodies. 2. Objectives: To restore water bodies to their natural storage capacity; to ensure groundwater recharge and raise the water table; to strengthen flood-control measures by preventing surplus water overflow and bund breaches; to regulate water storage for drinking and agricultural use, ensuring sustainable drinking water supply, increased crop production and expanded irrigated area; and to enhance the storage capacity of water bodies as part of disaster-management measures addressing both floods and droughts. 3. Scope of Works: Desilting and deepening of water bodies; desilting and restoration of feeder channels, inlet and outlet channels; removal of forest growth, shrubs, plants and encroaching vegetation on water bodies and bunds; strengthening, reshaping and stabilising bunds; restoring bunds to their original cross-sectional profile and approved slope; and restoration of sluices, surplus weirs and related hydraulic structures. 4. Selection of Works: Water bodies already restored in the preceding three years under AGAMT, MGNREGS, the State-funded minor irrigation tank restoration scheme, CSR, NGOs, G.O. (Ms.) No. 50, or any other funding source shall not be selected under this scheme. 5. Modes of Implementation: Works may be undertaken through: (A) Corporates/institutions/NGOs/community organisations/educational institutions implementing works with their own funds; (B) such entities funding works to be implemented by the district administration; (C) such entities providing machinery and materials; and (D) implementation under Industries (MMC-1) Department G.O. (Ms.) No. 50, dated 27.04.2017, and its amendments. 5.A. Implementation with Own Funds: Entities wishing to restore a water body must submit a detailed project report to the District Collector, who will forward it to the concerned Block Development Officer for field inspection and technical scrutiny. The BDO must conduct a field inspection and submit recommendations, through the Project Director, DRDA, to the District Collector within 15 days of receiving the proposal. Based on this, the Collector must issue a No Objection Certificate within 7 days. The department will provide the necessary technical guidance. A Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) will then be executed between the Collector and the entity. Once the NOC is issued and the MoU signed, funded works must commence immediately and be completed within three months of the MoU coming into effect. The implementation schedule must be planned to ensure all works are completed before the onset of the monsoon. 5.B. Entity-Funded, District-Administration-Implemented Works: (1) Estimate preparation – the Assistant Engineer/Union Engineer must prepare estimates based on the current Schedule of Rates (SoR); before administrative sanction, the Collector must physically verify at least 10% of works; the Additional Collector/Project Director (DRDA) and Executive Engineer (RD) must each independently verify 50% of works (ensuring 100% coverage); the Assistant Executive Engineer must field-verify 100% of works to ensure estimate accuracy. (2) Administrative sanction – the detailed estimate prepared by the Divisional/Assistant Engineer shall be forwarded through the BDO and Project Director (DRDA) to the Collector/Chairman, DRDA, for administrative sanction. (3) Technical sanction – mandatory for all works, to be accorded by a competent officer as per G.O. (Ms.) No. 106, RD&PR (PR-1) Department, dated 22.06.2024, and the Tamil Nadu Panchayats (Preparation of Plans and Estimates for Works, Procurement of Goods and Services and Execution of Contracts) Rules, 2024. (4) Tendering – all works must mandatorily follow e-Tendering procedures as per the Tamil Nadu Transparency in Tenders Act, 1998, the 2000 Rules thereunder, and the procedures in Annexure-II, Schedule-II of Notification-II under G.O. (Ms.) No. 106, dated 22.06.2024. (5) Execution of works – as specified under paragraphs 5.2 (Technical Standards) and 5.3. (6) Financial transactions – funds shall remain under the Collector's control; a separate district-level bank account must be opened and all payments made only through this account. 5.C. Provision of Machinery: Entities must provide the required machinery and equipment for sanctioned restoration works free of cost. Where fuel costs and skilled/unskilled labour wages are borne by other entities, the DRDA shall implement the works by pooling funds from two or more entities. The Assistant Engineer/Assistant Executive Engineer (RD) must estimate the duration of machinery use and fuel requirement based on the volume of silt to be removed and communicate this to the entity concerned. The Collector must issue orders specifying the required fuel quantity, machinery details, working hours and labour requirement. Works must be carried out under the supervision of technical officers and completed within the specified timeline. Departmental officials must properly maintain measurement books, machine hour-meter logs, daily usage registers, fuel consumption records and labour deployment records. All works must be documented with geo-tagged photographs by departmental officials. 5.1. Public Participation: Ayacutdars' Associations or Water Users' Associations may be permitted to participate in desilting works in water bodies. 5.2. Technical Standards and Specifications: All works must strictly follow PWD Schedule of Rates (SoR) and technical standards. Water body boundaries must be identified based on the Field Measurement Book (FMB) map and marked on the ground; boundary stones must be installed to prevent future encroachments. The FMB map must be obtained from the Village Administrative Officer (VAO). Topographical surveys must be conducted using precision instruments such as Auto Level and Total Station, with the Tank Bund Level (TBL), Full Tank Level (FTL) and Maximum Water Level (MWL) clearly marked at relevant locations. A contour survey must be conducted on a 10m x 10m grid covering the entire water spread; cross-section and longitudinal-section measurements must be taken at every 30-metre interval along the bund. The volume of excavation and bund-filling work must be calculated based on the contour map, certified by the Assistant Executive Engineer (RD) and Assistant Engineer (RD), and submitted to the Executive Engineer (RD). Silt excavation may proceed on a uniform slope from the FTL contour down to the sluice sill level. Desilting must also be carried out in inlet/outlet channels. Permanent Dead Storage Trenches must be constructed parallel to the bund at a distance of 40 metres from the bund, or five times the bund height, whichever is applicable (depth not exceeding 0.60 metres, with a minimum of 45 cm of earth cover above the water table or seepage layer). The Detailed Project Report must include: a technical specification report; a hydraulic details report; trial pit details; the FMB map; longitudinal-section (L.S.) and cross-section (C.S.) drawings of the bund; pre-measurement details and contour drawings; an earthwork calculation sheet; reduced level (RL) details; a certificate confirming the work has not been carried out under any government scheme in the preceding three years; photographs of all components; rate analysis; detailed estimate; and abstract estimate. 5.3. Execution of Works – Technical Standards: All shrubs and forest growth across the water spread must be completely removed and disposed of off-site; large trees and dense growth must be removed with roots using machinery (revenue from auctioning trees such as Prosopis juliflora, as per prevailing rules, must be credited to the concerned Panchayat Union/Village Panchayat account). In ponds/ooranies, a "Baby Pond" must be constructed at half the length and width of the main pond, with a minimum depth of 1 metre from the bed level. Excavation depth must be restricted to the original level of the water body; permanent reference benchmarks must be established on both sides, and measurement pegs ("Thandoos") placed at appropriate intervals. Benching (30cm x 30cm or 45cm x 45cm) must be provided on the old bund slope to ensure new earth bonds properly. Machinery such as JCBs, power rollers, dumpers and tractors must be used for sectioning, strengthening and consolidating bunds using excavated earth. When filling the bund, earth must be placed at least 30 cm wider than the designed width and later trimmed to the required slope; earth must be spread in 25 cm layers and compacted to 95% Proctor Density (OMC) using power rollers, vibratory rollers or plate compactors as appropriate. Bunds must be restored to their original cross-sectional profile, with an upstream slope of 1.5:1 and downstream slope of 2:1. For stand-alone water bodies, inlet and outlet channels must be desilted and restored for a minimum length of 100 metres. 5.4. Use of Excavated Earth: Surplus clay, silt, sand and gravel must be provided free of cost to farmers for agricultural use, to the public for household use, and to potters for their trade; the value of this surplus earth must not be included in the work estimate. 5.5. Monitoring and Quality Control: The DRDA must continuously monitor implementation; Additional Directors (ADRDs)/Chief Engineers/Superintending Engineers must conduct periodic inspections; State Quality Monitors must inspect each work at least once, either during execution or after completion. 5.6. Documentation and Reporting: All processes, from selection to completion of works, must be properly documented; high-resolution photographs and videos must be taken and preserved before, during and after execution; a Work Completion Certificate in the format given in Annexure-II must be prepared and recorded for every completed work. 5.7. Integration with the Vibrant Bharat Rural Employment Guarantee and Livelihood Scheme: Wherever necessary, planting of trees along bunds may be integrated with this scheme, irrespective of the funding source of the main works. 5.D. Desilting of Water Bodies under Industries Department G.O. (Ms.) No. 50, dated 27.04.2017: The District Collector must convene a coordination meeting of all concerned departments; a finalised list of minor irrigation tanks, ponds and ooranies selected for desilting must be prepared. Points to be observed before commencement of works: (a) the Assistant Project Officer (Infrastructure) must supervise preparation of the list and confirm that all water bodies belong to the RD&PR Department; (b) works must commence before the onset of the southwest monsoon; (c) desilting must be carried out carefully to avoid any damage to the bund; (d) in tanks used for irrigation, excavation must not go below the sluice sill level, to ensure uninterrupted water flow to fields; (e) excavation depth must not exceed the permitted limit; (f) prior permission from the concerned Tahsildar (valid for not more than 30 days) must be obtained before desilting; (g) concerned officials must continuously monitor full compliance with these guidelines and related Government Orders; (h) as specified in the Appendix to G.O. (Ms.) No. 50, farmers must remove the earth at their own expense, monitored by the District Collector; (i) an officer must be designated at each Village Panchayat level to monitor desilting works; (j) the Executive Engineer/Assistant Executive Engineer/Assistant Engineer must ensure that desilting works in minor irrigation tanks, ponds and ooranies under RD&PR are carried out as per the guidelines specified in the Standard Operating Procedure (SOP). The Secretary to Government, Rural Development and Panchayat Raj Department, is empowered to amend these guidelines whenever necessary, in consultation with the Commissioner of Rural Development and Panchayat Raj. Issued By: - DIPR, Secretariat, Chennai – 9