Work to restore irrigation tank, new bridge near Katpadi begins

Rejuvenation of irrigation tank in Chitteri village near Katpadi, Vellore, to benefit farmers with new bridge construction.

Work on rejuvenation of the irrigation tank, which is maintained by the Water Resources Department (WRD), at Chitteri village near Katpadi in Vellore and a new bridge connecting the tank with farm lands in surrounding villages commenced on Thursday.

It was a long-standing demand of residents, mostly farmers, in the region to rejuvenate the tank that will help to store more excess rainwater during monsoon. It will also prevent inundation of villages. “The tank is a lifeline for farmers in the area as water from the tank is used to cultivate crops, mostly paddy, in at least 12 villages along Palar river,” said N. Prabhu, a farmer.

Accompanied by Collector V.R.Subbulaxmi and Vellore MP D.M. Kathir Anand, Minister for Water Resources, Duraimurugan, laid the foundation stone for restoration of the tank at a cost of Rs 1.60 crore. The tank is located between Chitteri and Magimandalam villages in Katpadi taluk.

Spread over 52 acres, the irrigation tank, which has a total capacity of 32 mcft, will be rejuvenated under the Rehabilitation and Restoration of Lakes scheme. “Sluice gates will be repaired to ensure free flow of water from the tank to inlets for irrigation. The bund will also be strengthened. The entire work will be completed in nine months,” R. Sivasankaran, Assistant Engineer, WRD (Ponnai), told The Hindu.

As part of the work, WRD officials said that sluice gates and water supply channels in the tank will be repaired. Damaged shutters will be replaced with new ones. Over the years, thick vegetation has grown in the supply channel, sluice gates and bunds. It has blocked free flow of water into water channels and nearby small water bodies like streams and ponds. The repair works will restore the original space of the tank to store excess rainwater.

The existing bund, which is 4.5 metres in height, will be strengthened, covering 635 metres of the tank. A tiled walkers’ path will be laid on the bund of the tank. Of the total 6.6 metres width of the bund, tiled footpaths are being laid to a width of three metres to ensure its stability. Seating arrangements, solar powered LED street lights, a compound wall and signages on the bund will also be done.

A new bridge that will connect the bund of the tank and Chitteri village will be built to provide easy access to reach farmlands and neighbouring villages during monsoon. The single lane bridge will be 38 metres long and 4.25 metres wide, mainly for farmers to transport their produce from farmlands around the tank to warehouses.