TAMBARAM : The Madras High Court has restrained an individual from filling up a water body in Perumattunallur village, near Guduvanchery. It has also appointed an Advocate Commissioner to inspect and submit a report.

Chief Justice A.P. Shah and Justice D. Murugesan passed the orders on Thursday following a petition from D. Govindan, a resident of the village, that there was an attempt to fill up a tank. The court also directed Kancheepuram Collector and Superintendent of Police to extend the necessary cooperation to the Advocate Commissioner for carrying out inspection.

Natural tank

The petitioner stated that the tank, spread over 2.75 acres, was adjacent to a Siva temple. It was a natural tank with a shallow surface and was full of water due to the recent heavy rains.

Residents of Perumattunallur village were dependant on the tank as water from it was the source for drinking, cooking and irrigation. Stating that residents were using this tank for generations , the petitioner said that at no point of time did any individual make a claim over it. He also pointed out that the Kattankulathur Panchayat Union and the Perumattunallur Village Panchayat had desilted the tank in 1986, 1988 and 1994. And on July 2, an individual who claimed ownership of the land in which the tank was situated started filling it up with sand, gravel and rubbish.

If the tank was filled up, villagers would have to travel far to fetch water and further, it would also result in an ecological imbalance.

As protecting natural resources was the duty of government officials, the villages had made representations to the police and other departments.

But as they did not help them, he approached the High Court seeking a stay order on filling up of the tank, the petitioner added.

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