CHENNAI: The temple tank of the 800-year-old Thirusulanathar temple at Tirusulam here is a mess, with domestic sewage overflowing from a line passing along the tank bund. Encroachments over the years have blocked the view of the tank from the temple, which is believed to have been built in the 12th century by Kulothunga Cholan. Callous disposal of domestic waste into the tank has also made its water unfit for drinking. The jallikattu protests had sparked enthusiasm among youngsters of the area to give the tank a facelift.
“We got into the dirty water with minimal protection and began removing the plastic and hyacinth,” said K Kalidas, who organised the clean-up. But that is when the youngsters noticed a narrow sewage line passing along one of the bunds overflowing into the 60-cent tank. “We tried using cement bags to raise the height of the sewage line to prevent water from entering the tank,” said Karthik, another volunteer from the area.
However, the minimal funding the youngsters managed to raise couldn’t buy them a technically sound solution to stop sewage from entering the tank. They approached the Tirusulam town panchayat for a solution and expressed their concern to the district Collector. Kalidas claims that a proposal was prepared to widen the sewage line after the Collector intervened in July but it hasn’t been approved yet.
When Express contacted Tirusulam town panchayat, they said the proposal was ready. The Collector’s approval was awaited for allocation of funds to commence work. “We are planning to increase the width of the 111-metre sewage line to six feet and estimate it will cost around `4.23 lakhs,” said a official.
The official also said there are plans to clean the temple tank.