With two school boys having drowned in water bodies in Omalur Taluk over the past few days, villagers have been warned through ‘tom-tom’, asking not to allow their children to enter water bodies to take bath.
Heavy rain
Heavy rain in Shervaroyan Hills in Yercaud in the past one week has brought copious water supply into lakes, ponds and small water bodies.
Periya Lake and Chinna Lake have already reached their maximum storage levels while lakes in Kamalapuram, Puliyampatti, Chettipatti, and others were nearing their full capacity.
Hence, to alert the villagers about the weather forecast and warn them, the message was disseminated through ‘tom-tom’ in all the villages in the taluk.
Villagers were asked not to allow their children to take bath in lakes or water bodies, so as to prevent untoward incidents.
The tom-tom player in Sakkaraipatti village told The Hindu that his vibrant message would keep the villagers alert as he has been doing the service for the past 20 years.
“It is the easiest and cheapest mode of communication that reaches effectively,” he said.
On Saturday, a team led by Omalur Tahsildar M. Alagirisamy inspected the lakes and instructed villagers not to venture into flood water.
Removed
The team also removed encroachments and bushes in the Sarabanga River and ensured that water flowed without interruption.
All the Village Administrative Officers were also asked to keep constant watch over flood prone areas and also the water bodies so as to prevent children entering the water.
District Collector K. Maharabushanam has also asked officials to remove encroachments in water bodies and be prepared for facing the monsoon season.
