Ottudanpatti villagers in TN suspect role of sand mafia in changing their tank name
THOOTHUKUDI: Suspecting the sand mafia to be working for hand in glove with the district administration in Ottundanpatti, the villagers claimed that the name of their village is wrongly mentioned in a government communication for desilting their tank and demanded appropriate corrections.
The irrigation tank in the village is called the Ottudanpatti Vettuvarayankulam tank, vernacularly Thulukkankulam. Ottudanpatti is located in Aakkanayakanpatti village panchayat of Ottapidaram taluk.
The residents noted that, however, the name has been wrongly mentioned as Puliyampatti Veturankulam Tank, in a communication related to a tender for deepening the tank. They also added that the tank and its rights are vested with the villagers, who are mostly farmers cultivating vegetables, paddy, cotton, and other short-term crops.
R Desikaraja, a villager, charged that it is the sand mafia that calls the Ottudanpatti tank as Puliyampatti kulam tank, only to gain entry into the tank as there is stiff opposition from the villagers disallowing them to take sand. “The mafia from Puliyampatti is also trying to encroach on the Pillayar temple and two acres of land associated with it,” he added. The villagers condemned the officials concerned stating that despite applying for a survey to be conducted on the land around six months ago, they have not done it yet.
The villagers, headed by Azhagumalai, submitted a petition to District Collector Dr K Senthil Raj during a weekly grievance redressal meeting demanding the name of Ottudanpatti Vettuvarayankulam tank to be mentioned correctly in all the records. They also demanded the sluice repair works by the Ottapidaram BDO be stopped until the rectification is made.
Meanwhile, the members of Denotified Tribes Welfare Association urged Chief Minister MK Stalin to consider providing Denotified Tribe (DNT) certificates instead of the dual DNT/DNC certificates. “People holding DNT certificates were originally entitled to free education and various welfare assistance from the government under the consideration of tribes.
However, it was scrapped through a government order on July 30, 1979. Since the members of the Atulya Misra committee had recommended the distribution of DNT certificates following a detailed examination in 2018, the members of the association urged CM Stalin to provide them with DNT certificates for the tribes concerned,” they said.