COIMBATORE: Over 100 residents from the Kavundampalayam housing unit staged a protest on Tuesday and threatened to boycott elections due to water shortage.
Around 1,800 families are living in the Tamil Nadu Housing Board’s housing unit at Kavundampalayam in Ward 33 of the West Zone and a majority of them are working as government officials.
Over the past few days, the city has been facing an acute shortage of water supply. Due to the dip in the water levels in the water levels of the Siruvani and Pillur dams, the water supply frequency in the city has also decreased drastically.
Speaking to TNIE, L Shanmugam, Kavundampalayam Government Employees Residents Welfare Association president said, “For over nine days we did not receive proper water supply in our housing unit. Despite multiple complaints, no action was taken. So, we decided to block the Mettupalayam Road and stage a road roko demanding officials to sort out the issue. Though there is a well and a borewell in our housing unit. But neither of them has water. As we have suffered a lot, we decided to boycott the upcoming parliamentary election if our issues are not sorted in a few days.”
When inquired about it, a senior official from the Tamil Nadu Housing Board told TNIE, “As soon as the people staged a protest, we immediately took steps to supply water to them. The people have asked us to either dig a new borewell or recharge the existing one. As a permanent measure, we have decided to flush and recharge the existing borewell. A proposal has been prepared and sent to the higher authorities for approval. Once we receive the nod and funds, we shall begin the works soon.”