Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Oct 20, 2007
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Online edition of India's National Newspaper Saturday, Oct 20, 2007 ePaper |
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Tamil Nadu
KARUR: What was once an irrigation canal, Irattai Vaikkal, which bisects Karur town, has gradually degenerated into a drainage channel and is now a breeding ground for mosquitoes and communicable diseases. Efforts to renovate the Vaikkal, which moved in to top gear with the help of Karur MP K.C. Palanisamy, has got stuck with no graded contractor coming forward to undertake the job. Tenders will soon be called for the fifth time, as earlier bids did not attract qualified attention. The Vaikkal branches off from a minor tributary of the Amaravathy and passes through Karur town. Mr. Palanisamy took great efforts to include the renovation of the Vaikkal under the Centrally-sponsored Urban Infrastructure Development Scheme for Small and Medium Towns (UIDSSMT). It was Congress MP K. Natrayan, who initiated the work to renovate the Vaikkal but the project never really took for various reasons until it fell on Mr. Palanisamy to take concrete efforts to proceed further. DesiltPeople feel that the immediate need is to desilt the Vaikkal, as the sludge and slurry all along its course has turned into a veritable breeding ground for mosquitoes. They will also like the Vaikkal to retain its concrete lining and the encroachments cleared. Even if the Vaikkal, that has an ayacut as far as Somur, cannot be turned into an irrigation channel again, it can remain as a clean waterway channel, they feel. Preventing further pollution is the proximate need. The Vaikkal is under the administrative control of Karur municipality, which decided to rehabilitate the Vaikkal sometime ago. Mr. Palanisamy readied a proposal for renovation at a cost of Rs.3.5 crore under the UIDSSMT. It got the green signal and tenders were floated. Unfortunately, the tenders have received lukewarm response as factors such as clearing encroachments, rising cost of construction materials, contending with the continuous flow of drainage water and, more importantly, identifying properly graded contractors to undertake such a major work are among the problems cited for the delay in finalising the tenders and contractor. Whatever be the reason, the locals expect that the Rs.3.5-crore project should not go abegging, as it seeks to provide a new lease of life to the Vaikkal that was once the lifeline for several thousand acres and a few hundred farmers.
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