Farmers and residents near Othakadai area in Madurai urge the district administration to rejuvenate and clear channels carrying water from Yanaimalai hill to nearby tanks.
The farmers of the area said to store and use the excess water falling from the hill, British colonizers in 1893 created four different waterways to ensure that the water reached the nearby waterbodies to recharge groundwater, thereby benefiting the farmers.
While the first one was the tank near Narasinga Perumal Temple, the second one was Thethankulam Kundijatti tank and the other two were the big tank and Arumbanur Pudur Thottachi tank.
Water falling from four different places of the hill reaches the four tanks. The system was designed to not waste the water at any cost, but the recent developments around the area had only spared the tank near Narasinga Perumal Temple.
P. Palanisamy, a farmer residing in Arumbanur panchayat, said during monsoon season water falling on the hill flowed down. “Since there was less chance of building any tanks in the foothills, the engineers during the British period thought of directing the water to the nearby tanks to use it for agricultural purpose and and for livestock,” he added.
Further constructions like roads and temples that came up later along the waterways were built accordingly so that they did not block the water flow. But, since the recently built private buildings and houses had encroached on the channels at various points, the water flow in the channels was very minimal, he noted.
“The district administration before approving the construction should have ensured that there was no disturbance to the channels, but it failed on its part,” he said.
Another problem, he said, was caused by the stagnant water in the channel. Since the water could not flow due to the encroachments, the left-over water turned a breeding ground for mosquitoes, Mr. Palanisamy added.
A Revenue Department official said other complaints like road encroachment and blocking of the channel were being studied, but they were not aware of the private buildings encroaching on the channels. “I will ask the panchayat-level officers to check it,” official added.
Published - October 30, 2024 07:28 pm IST
