THOOTHUKUDI: Even as the district administration is busy pumping out stagnant water following the recent floods, people of Vellalanvilai near Udangudi have appealed not to pump out water from a shallow pit, spread across several acres, to allow groundwater levels to recharge. Udangudi block is categorised among the driest regions. The district administration is pumping out the water into Theri Kaadu, a prominent red sand desert in the area.
After the recent floods, which triggered a breach of the Sadayaneri Tank, surplus water stagnated in Vattanvilai, Thandapathu, Chettivilai, Arasarpettai, Adaipanallur, Chettiyapathu, Manikapuram, Pathankarai, Manadu, Paramankurichi and Zion Nagar, covering nearly 2,500 acres. A section of the Paramankurichi-Udangudi road was also submerged, with water levels nearing eight feet. Nearly 37 families in Vellalanvilai and 20 families in Adaipanallur were marooned, according to sources.
People in the region claim that the submerged areas were once part of a huge catchment area in the past, and had witnessed a large gush of water in 1946-47.
The Udangudi administration had been pumping out water in Zion Nagar on the Paramankurichi-Udangudi road, where traffic movement had been curtailed following heavy rain on December 17 and 18.
Sources said water stagnation in the catchment areas, bordering five village panchayats, encompasses small tanks such as Manatchikulam, Narikulam, Sirukulam, Thandapathu, Vadaku Kulam, Vellalanvilai Kundankarai and Zion Nagar Kundankarai. It also covers patta lands.
Speaking to TNIE, a resident of Vellalanvilai, Augustin, said, “We see this (stagnation of water) as a fortune. Some decades ago, this region was known for betel, banana and paddy cultivation. However, water scarcity and periods of drought forced people of this region to move to Chennai in search of work.”
A retired government official told TNIE that surplus water reached the catchment areas after several decades. “The government must stop pumping out water, and instead, provide an alternate solution for the stranded families and raise the Paramankurichi-Udangudi road for vehicular movement to resume.”
“During the British era, villagers used canoes (parisal) to travel from Chettiyapathu to Chettivilai. The region was a swamp for six months while crops were cultivated during the other half,” a local stated.
“An octogenarian at Thandapathu still has the paddle once used to row the canoes,” said another local.
“The water stagnating in Vellalanvilai will benefit farmers in Paramankurichi panchayat, Vellalanvilai, Manadu Thandapathu, Laxmipuram in Chetiyapathu and Meignanapura. Pumping the water into Theri Kaadu is wasteful,” V Gunaselan, an activist told TNIE.
"The stagnation at the catchment area will recharge groundwater and the existing saline nature of the groundwater will change. Over 5,000 farmers in the surrounding villages will also benefit greatly", he said, adding, “Since this is a drought-hit region, water stagnation in catchment areas should not be pumped out as it is beneficial to the region.”