With drinking water distribution becoming erratic even in the district headquarters after storage level in the Papanasam and Manimuthar dams falling rapidly, special efforts are being taken to sustain a decent supply of drinking water to residents of Kovilpatti taluk, where the supply is chaotic during summer every year.
As regular drinking water supply to Kovilpatti taluk residents has always been a problem due to scarcity, Collector K. Senthil Raj visited the taluk on Friday to mitigate this crisis by judiciously using the available quantity and augmenting the quantity through possible new sources.
According to Dr. Senthil Raj, the Kazhugumalai Town Panchayat in Kovilpatti Taluk with over 25,000 population was in need of nine lakh litres of potable water a day. “We’re using 12 motors to pump drinking water to Kazhugumalai town panchayat from the infiltration wells sunk in the Tamirabharani river near Seevalaperi. Since the 15-year-old pipes laid for about 45 km to carry water from the perennial river to Kazhugumalai have developed cracks at several places, the breaches in the main pipes and the distribution pipes in Kazhugumalai town panchayat areas are being attended by the officials to avert wastage,” said Dr. Senthil Raj, who also inspected the overhead tank fitted with automatic motors at Pasumpon Nagar in Kazhugumalai town panchayat for ensuring supply of drinking water to the residents.
When he visited the overhead tank, he checked the quantity received from the Tamirabharani and the quantum of drinking water being supplied to the residents to ascertain the quantity getting wasted through breaches.
“Since the water flow in the river is very thin now as the southwest monsoon is yet to become active along the Western Ghats and the Papanasam and Manimuthar dams are yet to get decent influx of water, we’ve decided to steady the drinking water supply with the help of two wells in Kazhugumalai. We hope drinking water supply from the Tamirabharani will improve shortly after the monsoon becomes active to bring increased influx of water into the reservoirs,” Dr. Senthil Raj said.
In the areas under Kovilpatti municipality, drinking water supply is being ensured through 16 overhead tanks. When four motors of these overhead tanks became defunct, technicians were hired immediately to repair the motors so that drinking water supply to the residents would not get affected.
After completing his inspection pertaining to drinking water distribution, Dr. Senthil Raj went to Naalaattinpudur police station where he checked the CCTVs installed in the police station as the alleged defunct CCTV cameras in the Kallidaikurichi police station triggered huge hue and cry in the Ambasamudram custodial torture case.
“All the six CCTV cameras installed in the Naalaattinpudur police station are functioning properly,” the Collector said.
