Coimbatore: With an aim to de-silt and rejuvenate the water channels in the District, an awareness rally as part of Centre's Jal Shakthi Abhiyan Scheme was held at Somayampalayam Panchayat here on Monday.
Coimbatore: Aiming to desilt and rejuvenate the water channels in the District, an awareness rally as part of the Centre's Jal Shakthi Abhiyan Scheme was held at Somayampalayam Panchayat, here on Monday.
Students from Anna University participated in the rally to create awareness on Jal Shakthi Abhiyan scheme and water conservation.
About seven water channels originating from the Marudhamalai Hills in the Western Ghats merge together at the foothills and allows water to flow into the pond at Somayampalayam and Kasturinaickenpalayam Panchayats, thus aiding farmers along the region. The pond water also helps to recharge the wells and borewells in the area to a large extent.
The water channel is part of the Noyyal and presently said to be in a poor state. Years of sand mining and dumping of wastes in the channel has transformed it into a dumpyard rather than a water channel. Over the past two months, zealous youngsters and the public of the area joined hands to form a group named 'Aani Ver' to clear the water channel and carry out de-silting activities.
Understanding the importance of water accumulation at the Somayampalayam pond which is the only place where water from the Marudhamalai Hills flows into, the group carried out a study and proposed to the District Rural Development Agency (DRDA) to strengthen the bund from Marudhamalai to Somayampalayam which is a 4-km stretch.
Accepting their proposal, the DRDA have joined hands with the volunteers of Aani Ver, as part of the Jal Shakthi Abhiyan scheme to carry out desilting and strengthening of the bund leading from Marudhamalai to Somayampalayam.
The Director of DRDA (Planning), Ruban Shankar Raj and voluteers of the Aani Ver group took part in the rally.