VELLORE: A group of 26 village panchayat presidents in Natrampalli block, in addition to discussing the regular agenda of the district administration at the Grama Sabha held on Sunday, passed resolutions seeking the intervention of the state and the central government to revive the Palar River. R R Vasu, president of the Ramanaickanpatti panchayat, who is also heading the Natramapalli block village panchayat federation told Express that this was the first time they had focused their attention on revival of Palar River through artificial rains.
President of the Eklaspuram panchayat Deva Cholan said, an estimated 1 crore litres of water is being extracted in the upper Palar region to supply nearby towns Tirupattur, Jolarpet, Vaniyambadi. He echoed Vasu saying, ‘we have deviated from the routine Grama Sabha sitting in a bid to reflect the aspirations and apprehensions of the people of this region by passing additional resolutions to protect the Palar river’.
Resolutions were also adopted urging the State and the Centre to initiate steps to divert excess water from the Nethravathi River in north Karnataka to Palar River. The panchayats have urged the district administration and the State to make upper Palar self-sufficient before distributing water to nearby towns and villages. The panchayat presidents decided not to allow any new water works in the region. They also urged the State and Centre to establish a ‘Palar Authority’ to free the river from pollution and to work on projects to revive the river.
The panchayat presidents met under the aegis of the local NGOs, Vellore district Palar Protection Association and the Organization for Environment Protection and Social Development to chart out the proposed move to pass resolutions.