The Nasuvini Riverbed Farmers Welfare Association has called upon the State government to expedite the underground sewerage network system project for Pattukottai Municipality conceived by the officials a decade ago.
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In a memorandum addressed to Chief Minister M. K. Stalin, the Association president, V. Veerasenan said that a detailed project report for the creation of underground sewerage network at an estimated cost of ₹33.40 crore at Pattukottai was mooted in 2010 when the present Chief Minister served as the Local Administration Minister under the Chief Ministership of late M. Karunanidhi.
However, the project remained in cold storage presumably due to the change in guard in the State Administration. When a representation in this regard was made in 2017 to the Thanjavur District Administration, Mr. Veerasenan said, the District Administration responded in writing that a revised estimate of ₹146.07 crore had been prepared and sent for the consent of the Revenue Department.
He stated that letting out of sewage generated in 33 words of Pattukottai Municipality into the waterbodies within the town and as well as in the watercourses passing through Pattukottai region leads to pollution of groundwater source. He lamented that releasing of untreated sewer into the watercourses which serve as a source for irrigation sometimes result in agriculture activities taking place in polluted water.
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Pointing out that the population of Pattukottai Municipality was all set to cross 80,000 mark compared to around 73,000 people as per 2011 Census, the number of property tax assessment buildings both domestic and commercial buildings in the town have already crossed 22000. Further, the civic body itself supplies around one crore litre of water daily for consumption as drinking water and for other purposes.
In addition to this, an equal quantity of groundwater potential was being tapped for use for domestic and commercial purposes by the public/business community in the town, he claimed.