THOOTHUKUDI: Even a month after torrential rain battered Thoothukudi district, Vellalanvilai village continues to be marooned with locals still staying at the village's CSI church. Although the district administration raised levels of a stretch of the Udangudi-Paramankurichi road on Saturday, it has been closed since the floods.
Following severe rainfall on December 17 and 18 last year, the Sadayaneri tank was breached and flooded the villages of Vattanvilai, Thandapathu, Chettivilai, Arasarpettai, Adaipanallur, Chettiyapathu, Manikapuram, Pathankarai, Manadu, Paramankurichi, and Zion Nagar.
At least 2,500 acres of land were submerged, severing connectivity to the Paramankurichi-Udangudi road.
Under the supervision of Fisheries, Fishermen Welfare, Animal Husbandry Minister Anitha R Radhakrishnan, the district administration is engaged in dewatering works, and diverting it into the nearby Theri forest off Zion Nagar.
The villagers have rued over 30 houses being underwater. A woman from the hamlet said that her house is still six-feet deep under water, and that she could access it only after pumping water for 10 days.
"Our mud-tiled house in the village had sunk in water, which touched 17 feet. Since my mother suffered a stroke, she had to be relocated to my house in Tiruppur, at the time of the flood. All our belongings have been spoiled due to the water stagnation," she said.
Given the volume of stagnated water, the district administration is yet to dewater the areas. "The water level might reduce if it is pumped for another month. So far, we have raised the road level to enable traffic movement," said an official.
It may be noted that a section of the public had urged the authorities not to dewater the areas to enable groundwater recharge.