Coimbatore: Farmers of Vellalore village in Madukarai taluk have appealed to the district administration to desilt the Raja Vaikal tank as silt has been preventing the inflow of water from the Noyyal river into the parched tank.
The farmers’ association stated that agriculturists who depend on the tank for agriculture were in a state of distress due to lack of water for irrigation. They also alleged that groundwater has been completely depleted, resulting in drinking water shortage in the area as well.
The PWD department and environmental NGO, Siruthuli, tried in 2007, in a public initiative to revive and conserve water resources. They removed a large quantity of silt from the Vellalore canal to facilitate good flow of water into the tank. This had revived the almost dry, 99-acre tank situated in the southern part of the city.
Vellalore tank benefited from the 600 ft canal Siruthuli dug in 2006 to link the Kurichi tank with the Vellalore canal for diverting surplus water. The farmers’ association also demanded the withdrawal of permission that has been granted by the district administration to remove gravel for 1 metre on 15 acres of the total 99 acres of the tank.
The farmers alleged that private parties were digging as deep as 15 metres a day and had been plugging the pit with clay to make the authorities believe that they had taken only 1 metre gravel from the tank.
