After a span of nearly 20 years, river Palar has come alive with copious water flowing from the point where it enters Tamil Nadu at Pullur in Vellore district. Water has travelled along the course of the river for nearly 120 km. It was during the end of July that surplus water from the check dam constructed by Andhra Pradesh government at Perumpallam overflowed into the Palar river and flowed for nearly 4 km reaching Avarankuppam near Vaniyambadi.
Following heavy rains, water kept flowing into the river from the check dam, while its tributaries also received good flow following rains in the catchment areas. Over the last two months, Palar has been receiving water flow at regular intervals.
According to officials of the Public Works Department, there was one foot of surplus water at the check dam at Perumpallam.
The water has reached Palar anaicut and was being diverted to three waterbodies in the downstream of Arcot – Kaveripakkam Eri, Mahendravadi Eri and Chakramalur Eri. There is water flow in Ponnai river too, an official said.
“There is heavy flow of water in Palar. As per water readings taken up at Avarankuppam, there was water flow in Palar during 1996-1997. In September 1996, the river recorded 75.20 Mm3 of water followed by 73.90 Mm3 in October,” he said.
He recalled that in 2015 some parts of the river witnessed water flow after its tributaries – Malataaru, Koundinya and Agaram – received water following rains in local catchment areas. But there was no rainfall in upper Palar region. In previous years too, there have been water flow in some parts of the river following rains.
“The Vinnamangalam Eri that has a direct channel to Palar has filled up after more than 20 years. So this shows that such heavy flow has come after two decades,” he explained.
For 82-year-old Jamuna Thyagarajan, a resident of Ambalur, it was a wonderful sight to see the water flowing into Palar river at its starting point at Pullur. “I visited the spot two days ago. It was wonderful to see the water gushing into the river with a noise. It has been more than 20 years since I saw such heavy flow in the river,” she said.
Over the years, Palar’s height has increased due to indiscriminate smuggling of sand, and its width has reduced due to encroachments, Ms. Thyagarajan, who is the president of Vellore District Palar Protection Association, said. “When I was young, I remember seeing Palar full of white sand. But over the years, sand smuggling has eaten into the riverbed,” she added.
She hoped that this heavy flow of water will help in recharging ground water level as it has depleted due to over exploitation. “The government should take steps to revive agriculture in this part of the district,” the octogenarian said. Another Palar activist A.C. Venkatesan, insists that not a single drop of water should be wasted. “This water should be diverted and stored in water bodies in Vellore and surrounding districts. Palar flows for 220 km in Tamil Nadu, and water would have reached much earlier if the Andhra Pradesh government did not construct check dams across the river,” he said.
He also wanted check dams to be constructed on warfooting to ensure that water from Palar flows into channels linked to water bodies.
