TENKASI: Boycotting the grama sabha meeting over non-establishment of a Village Administrative Officer (VAO) at Kalathimadam, residents from seven villages of Kuthapanchan panchayat held a protest at Parumbu Nagar on Thursday. Higher officials of revenue and rural development departments arrived at the spot and held a meeting with them. Sources said the residents from Parumbu Nagar, Kalathimadam, Anaiyappapuram, Kurichi Nagar, Nehru Nagar, Kuthalingapuram and Arunachalapuram have been demanding the VAO office for a long time as the existing VAO office is located five to eight km away in Kuthapanchan, to where there is no bus service.
"Our petitions to district collector, Minister KKSSR Ramachandran, Assembly Speaker M Appavu and Chief Minister M K Stalin did not yield any result. The Alangulam Tahsildar S Ravindran furnished false information to the Chief Minister M K Stalin, when responding to my petition, saying that the existing VAO office is located just three km away from Kalathimadam. District Collector P Akash should take action against Ravindran who misled the CM without visiting the field," demanded the DMK Union Councillor Pasupathidevi Dravidamani.
M Selvaraj, a resident, said 6,000 people, of the total population of 10,000, reside in these seven villages. "However, the officials are refusing to bifurcate the Kuthapanchan panchayat. Elderly people, widows and students are finding it difficult to approach the VAO to avail welfare schemes," he added. Assistant Director (Village Panchayat) Fransis Xavier, Block Development Officers Parthasarathy and Thilagaraj arrived at the location to pacify the villagers. Following a written promise by deputy tahsildar Karunakaran, revenue inspector Subramanian and VAO Shanmuga Anand that the VAO office would function from Kalathimadam three days a week from February 1, residents participated in the Grama Sabha Meeting.
Meanwhile in Tirunelveli district, Alavanthankulam villagers boycotted the grama sabha meeting to oppose the state government's plan to acquire pasture lands for a private solar power plant.