TNPCB collects samples from Uyyakondan canal in Trichy to check water quality

TRICHY: After the Madras high court sought a status report on the pollution in the Uyyakondan canal in Trichy city, officials from Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board (TNPCB) collected samples from different locations on Tuesday to check the quality of water.
A team of officials from the district administration in the Trichy Corporation and the TNPCB inspected the canal on Tuesday.
A distributary of the Cauvery river, the 69 km long Uyyakondan canal originates at Pettaivaithalai and ends at Valavanthankottai. The canal passes through Trichy city (nine km).
The court demanded a status report from the authorities on the effluent discharge into the canal and the growth of weed.
While hearing a public interest litigation, the court also wanted to know if biomedical waste from Mahatma Gandhi Memorial Government Hospital (MGMGH) was discharged into the canal.
It had impleaded the TNPCB as a respondent and directed officials to carry inspection of the canal.
A team of TNPCB officials headed by Trichy district environmental engineer R Lakshmi collected the water samples from the Uyyakondan canal from 12 spots in the city.
These places include a stretch behind Ayyappan temple, Alwarthope and Palakkarai where not only effluent is discharged into the canal, but waste is also dumped resulting in pollution of the water body.
“Even though the city corporation has been taking steps to avoid pollution of the canal, we have suggested corrective steps like de-weeding of the canal immediately by PWD and Trichy Corporation to prevent pollution,” said a senior TNPCB official.
The water samples would be taken again after a week from these spots to check if the level of pollution has come down, said the official.