Bovines splash their way through Bahour lake. The cows obediently follow the woman herder’s instructions. However, the calves shake their heads in resistance and meander towards the bushes to graze. The woman gives them a friendly push. They moo a bit, but nevertheless, file into the water. Once they are in the lake, they do not want to leave.
The aim of my short weekend visit to Puducherry was mainly to explore the city and its quintessential beach, rocks, wine and sun. Thanks to the spirited PondyCAN team, who have included a visit to Bahour in the Pondicherry Heritage Festival, I get to take a detour from the usual and visit this rural setting, just half-an-hour’s drive from Puducherry. “This used to be our picnic spot when we were teenagers,” says Sunaina Mandeen, co-founder of PondyCAN and one of the co-organisers of the Pondicherry Heritage Festival.
Bucolic scenes
And, it does make perfect sense to picnic here. With its narrow lanes by the lakes and tanks and slow pace, this is an apt place for cycling as well as bird-watching. Bahour resembles a scene from a painting. A mild, mid-afternoon breeze rustles the leaves of the coconut and neem trees. A crane can be spotted following a cow and her calf.
The vendors at potti kadais , selling thaen and kadala muttai , smile at us as we ask for directions. A bandwagon of city dwellers is not a very common sight in this peaceful village, otherwise. The village, which boasts 27 tanks, sugarcane and paddy fields, is aptly called the rice bowl of the Union Territory of Puducherry. A less-explored area that has missed the eye of Instagram tourists, Bahour has one of the oldest irrigation systems, harking back to the Chola period. Next to the Bahour lake is an Ayyanar temple, which defies conventional notions of South Indian temples. It is almost an open space without a well-defined structure, and has idols of a deity with a thick moustache, a horse, a soldier and a policeman! Before visiting Bahour lake, it is almost a tradition to visit this temple. However, the more famous one is the Moolanathaswamy Temple, built during the 10th Century by a Chola king. It is an ASI site now, attracting heritage enthusiasts and history buffs from the city. Arjunan, president of the Keezhparikalpet Tank association in Bahour, says people believe this is a holy space, blessed with breeze, trees and water. There are inscriptions detailing the history of the temple on its walls. A sadhu chanting prayers walks past as we tread on the cold stone floor and circumambulate the cream-coloured structure that breathes history.
However, water-intensive industries have sunk their roots deep into this soil, and real estate players are waiting to turn the water bodies into residential plots. Probir Banerjee, co-founder of Pondy Citizen’s Action Network, a non-profit organisation that works for the preservation of the natural, social, cultural and spiritual heritage of Bahour, has been at the forefront of the fight. “Industrial growth here will affect farmers and deplete water levels. If you resist, you are tagged as anti-development.” Arjunan takes us to the Sirutheri tank. It is a scenic location too, with stretches of paddy fields and the tank filled with floating algae. The hyacinth menace is an ever-present issue in Bahour and the tank owners’ associations and farmers are trying to prevent more of it from destroying the water bodies here.
However, Bahour also tells a positive story. A people’s movement has organically sprung up here — the city and the village have joined hands to fight against the environmental menace. They have been persuading the Government to rehabilitate tanks and ponds.
Saving Bahour
As we walk our way through the broken bottles strewn on the ground at Sirutheri tank, Arjunan and Banerjee discuss ideas that can save this place, with the help of the local community. A birdwatching centre would be a great boost for Bahour. It has always been a haven for so many migratory birds, says Arjunan. Banerjee has a few suggestions too: “What about vendors selling elaneer and sugarcane juice, since Bahour is blessed with both?”
It is as if the floodgates to their imagination have opened. Mandeen, Banerjee and Arjunan discuss more ideas, ranging from a centre for medicinal plants and a restaurant specialising in millet meals to cultural festivals and agricultural hubs selling organic seeds. The idea is to build an alternative tourism project, run by the local community.
People’s movement
Due to the constant persuasion of villagers, the Puducherry Department of Science, Technology and Environment has finally secured a grant of ₹17 crore from NABARD for revitalising 20 tanks and 32 ponds.
How to get there
Bahour is a half-an-hour drive by road from Puducherry towards Cuddalore.
You can get there via car or bus.
