There is no trace of 30ft-wide canal in Namakkal village

Namakkal: Residents of Vaikkal Karadu area at Pallipalayam here on Tuesday said they would petition the district administration to trace a canal, which had gone into oblivion after being encroached by a few people.

They said the canal, which originated from Perumal Malai, a small hillock at Pallipalayam, used to pass through Kollapalayathur Thottam and Vaikkal Karadu, before splitting into five branches near Lakshmi Nagar in Bhavani in Erode district. “Later, it submerged in the Cauvery after reaching Kalingarayan canal.”

M Sekar, a resident of Vaikkal Karadu, said the canal was around 30ft wide. “It used to have water throughout the year and the villages situated along it benefitted from it. The canal would be flowing with copious water whenever it rains in Perumal Malai,” he said.

Another resident, A Aadhavan alias Arumugam, state organizer, Tamilaga Desiya Katchi (TDK), expressed a similar view. “I used to go for swimming and fishing in the canal.” He said he had been residing in Vaikkal Karadu area for more than 30 years.

The villagers said they had petitioned the district administration many times to restore the canal, but in vain. Aadhavan blamed the revenue department officials for not evicting the encroachers.

Pointing out that many people had constructed buildings, including houses and shops, by encroaching the canal, they urged the district administration to demolish them at the earliest. “We want the officials to restore the canal at the earliest,” said S Bhaskar, another villager.

When contacted, Pallipalayam tahsildar R Raghunathan said he would look into the issue at the earliest. “I will direct revenue inspector and village administrative officer to verify the old records. If there is any canal marking in the document, we will assess the land using the records and carry out eviction drive,” he told TOI.