TIRUNELVELI: After a five-hour-long inspection of the Thamirabarani river banks within the city limit, Tirunelveli Corporation Commissioner V Sivakrishnamurthy on Wednesday said his administration would construct a sewage collection system consisting of five to 10 lakh-litre sumps to avoid discharge of sewage into the river.
The commissioner said that a significant volume of sewage is being discharged into the river in four places and a smaller volume of discharge was observed in 16 other locations. "We have identified four different locations for the construction of the sewage collection system through which the sewage being discharged into the river will be collected and pumped to the channel of the Underground Sewerage Scheme (UGSS). The UGSS will then bring the sewage to the Ramayanpatti treatment plant. The pending works of the UGSS and the construction of the sewage collection system will be completed in two months," said Sivakrishnamurthy.
Stating that the corporation received complaints regarding the discharge of sewage into the Thamirabarani River, the commissioner said his administration was taking various steps to stop the menace. "The sewage lines of Sindupoonthurai, Meenakshipuram, and a few other places are well prepared to be connected with the UGSS.
Some houses, which do not have space for the construction of toilets, often release their sewage into the stormwater drains flowing into the rivers Palayankalvai, Tirunelveli Kalvai, and Kodakan Kalvai. We are surveying such unorganised houses and will issue a notice to them. If they continue to release sewage even after the construction of the sewage collection system, the corporation will levy a hefty fine on them," Sivakrishnamurthy added.