Governor Purohit plans pan-Tamil Nadu tour, triggers political storm

TIRUPUR/COIMBATORE: A day after he triggered a political storm by holding a meeting of top government officials+ in Coimbatore, Tamil Nadu governor Banwarilal Purohit came across a group of farmers in Tirupur who, apparently disappointed by the ineptitude of the government, sought an assurance from him to get the Avinashi-Athikadavu water project going. The DMK and other opposition parties had termed Tuesday's meeting an infringement on the state's rights. And in Coimbatore, on a visit to the Gandhipuram Town bus stand on Wednesday, the governor decided to set an example in maintaining cleanliness by taking a broom and sweeping the premises+ . Purohit, who also inspected the e-toilets and a public toilet in and around the bus stand, told reporters that he would visit all districts in the state every year.



In Tirupur district, the farmers from Erode and Tirupur made a fervent appeal to the governor in the presence of animal husbandry minister Udumalai K Radhakrishnan. "The Avinashi-Athikadavu project was planned 50 years ago and the present government has allotted Rs 250 crore for it, but the project is yet to materialise. We request you to initiate steps to get the project going soon," Tamil Nadu Farmers Associations' Federation president P K Deivasigamani told the governor at the inaugural function of a tree planting programme at Thoravalur village near Avinashi on Wednesday.