Villagers brave flooded river to transport milk in Dharmapuri

Dairy farmers in Chitteri Hills brave dangerous river crossing to sell produce amid flash floods, highlighting need for bridge.

With the Kalasapadi River in spate following heavy rain and flash floods in the district, dairy farmers of Chitteri Hills have had to cross the river with ropes to sell their produce to the villages downhill.

Areas surrounding Chitteri Hills witnessed heavy rain, and the resulting flash floods left the people of Arasanatham, Kalasapadi, Akkaraikadu Kottavalavu in Paapireddipatti taluk stranded. With no other place to sell their produce and faced with losses, the livestock-dependent farmers of the region, unmindful of the dangers involved, made a crossover using ropes to carry 3,500 litres of milk across.

Local sources confirm that a bridge across Kalasapadi River has been a long-standing demand of locals in the area.