An under-construction tailoring and typing centre for women, which was being built by the Usur village panchayat, was demolished by the Water Resources Department (WRD) as the building was coming up on the catchment land along the main water channel in the village.
Officials of the WRD said that vast open lands along the main water channel in the village belong to the Department. The tract of land on both sides of the channel has been used as a catchment area from where excess rainwater gets discharged into nearby waterbodies like streams and ponds.
Construction activities on the open land will result in the inundation of other areas like agricultural lands and residential areas. “WRD maintains many irrigation tanks in the region for domestic consumption and farming purposes. Construction, even for public purposes, on such open areas maintained as part of water conservation efforts are not allowed,” said K. Amrish, Assistant Engineer (AE), WRD (Anaicut).
Along with revenue officials and Village Administrative Officer (VAO) S. Aravindan, WRD officials, led by Mr. Amrish, had inspected the under-construction centre in the village. Initial inquiry had revealed that the panchayat officials identified the open land for the centre due to ease of access and the lack of alternatives.
Spread over 600 sq.ft., the centre was being built at a cost of ₹16 lakh to provide free training in tailoring and typing for women in the village. At present, an SHG group runs an ad-hoc training centre for women once in six months. The civic body had planned to build a permanent free training centre in the village.
Published - July 04, 2024 01:30 am IST
