THOOTHUKUDI: Although flood water receding in Thoothukudi district a week after torrential rain caused inundation comes as good news, Tangedco's work on restoring electricity supply and communication between Srivaikuntam and Authoor villages has become an uphill task.
Hundreds of severed cables and toppled towers have incurred Tangedco huge losses.
The Thamirabarani River was in spate following inflow of two lakh cusecs of water on December 17 and 18. As a result, waters flooded villages that fall in the three-kilometre stretch on either side of the river.
At Umarikadu and Eral villages on the northern bank, floodwater flattened compound walls of hundreds of houses, EB metres, and poles.
At Umarikadu, a high-tension electric pole situated near the river was uprooted after water overflowed and broke the retaining wall.
Panchayat president Rajesh Kumar said that the water level went as high as 15 feet, completely submerging some of the old houses with their valuables and vehicles.
"The government's relief of `6,000 and compensation for damaged houses are not sufficient," he added.
Speaking to TNIE, a senior Tangedco official said that they could reach the peripheral areas of Srivaikuntam, Eral, and Authoor only after the water levels receded.
"More than 18 transformers, including six at Punnakayal and 12 at Eral, and one high tension tower are yet to be installed as on Sunday. Only then full power supply will be restored," he said.
A resident of Umarikadu said that even though power supply has been restored in the main areas of Srivaikuntam, Eral, and Authoor, independent works in different houses across remote villages are still pending.
In case of cellular towers, authorities are yet to rectify technical snags due to the inaccessibility of the areas which house the towers. An official said that nearly 50 cellular towers in Srivaikuntam and Tiruchendur areas have been damaged.
They have appealed to the district administration to pump out water so that they can access the towers and restore communication between Srivaikuntam and Authoor, which has been disrupted for a week now.
"The cellular towers have run out of batteries and are out of order," said an official.
Following officials' request for temporary communication arrangements, BSNL had commissioned CoWBTS (Cell On Wheel) — a movable Base Trans-receiver Station — to Eral after the telephone exchange there was damaged. CoWBTS can be accessed by customers of any network service, an official said.
The official added that it may take another couple of days to restore communication in the region.