Water released into the Vaigai River on the occasion of the Chithirai festival has to some extent alleviated the city's water scarcity, which had swelled in the past few weeks, especially in the outer corporation limits. Residents had to wait a minimum of 5-10 days for drinking water supply through corporation pipelines, or pay `15 per pot to private tanker operators for drinking water.
It was also the hotly discussed topic in the first meeting of the newly-elected city corporation council held on April 12. While briefing on the water distribution issues, Corporation Commissioner Dr TK Karthikeyan said the drying up of a major borewell in the Melakaal area had solely led to a shortage of 15 MLD (millions of litres per day).
"In this situation, the Public Works Department released water from the Vaigai Dam for the Chithirai festival. This has provided us 16 MLD to tide over the shortage, and the recent rains have also slightly recharged the groundwater table," he added. However, residents have urged the civic body to take proactive steps to solve the scarcity as the coming months could vastly worsen the situation.
The decent flow in Vaigai has also led several city residents to visit the river banks and relax. "Though Kallazhagar entered the river yesterday morning itself, we came here on Sunday to witness the Vaigai flow," said Muniaswamy, a resident of Arapalayam.