Urban and rural local bodies in the district would be able to supply water to residents as and when all the tanks get filled, Municipal Administration Minister S.P. Velumani said in a release after he held a review meeting at the Coimbatore Collectorate on Friday.
All the tanks were getting filled up after they were dredged and their inlet channels were cleaned under the Chief Minister’s Kudimaramathu scheme. If the South West Monsoon rain were to continue, the tanks would fill up fast and it would have a positive impact on water supply. He asked officials from the Public Works, Revenue, Municipal Administration and others and Fire and Rescue Service personnel to coordinate relief work and keep an eye on water course.
He asked the PWD officials to monitor water flow in Rivers Noyyal and Bhavani to keep higher officials posted of increase in flow.
He also spoke about the distribution of essential commodities and financial assistance through fair price shops to PDS card holders and various sections of the society. The release said senior district administration officials participated in the meeting.
‘Evacuate people if necessary’
A press release issued after his visit to Mettupalayam to witness the flow in River Bhavani and take stock of the district administration’s preparedness said he asked the officials to keep ready community halls, wedding halls and schools if the necessity arose to evacuate people from the River Bhavani banks and low-lying areas.
In the last two days, the inflow into the Pilloor Reservoir was 34,000 cusecs and the discharge was 25,000 cusecs to maintain the water level at 97 feet. The full reservoir level is 100 feet.
Last year, the discharge from the Reservoir was 88,000 cusecs. But this year the situation thus far had not warranted such a huge discharge. But nevertheless, revenue divisional officers, tahsildars, block development officers, municipal commissioners, Fire and Rescue Services personnel and police should closely monitor the situation.
He asked the officials to ensure that sand bags were ready and so were town-criers to alert at the right time. He also directed the Disaster Management Department to alert people through media. The Minister also appealed to the people to avoid bathing in water bodies during the rainy season.
