Residents of Nagaroothu tribal settlement within Pollachi forest range of Anamalai Tiger Reserve (ATR) are waiting for a proper bridge of about 15 feet across the contour canal connecting Sarkarpathy Power House and Thirumurthy Dam, which they need to have access to outside world.
Around 140 residents of the settlement, around 10 km away from Sethumadai, are now using a metal bridge of two-and-a-half feet width without railings to cross the canal.
After coming to know about the plight of the community, the Rotary Club of Coimbatore Town has expressed willingness to construct a bridge with railings across the canal with the consent of authorities.
“There were several concrete bridges of about eight feet width with a side wall of about two feet across the canal for the use of the settlement and also for animals. The bridge for the settlement was removed when maintenance works were done for the canal some years ago. The present metal bridge that was constructed a few years ago is very narrow and difficult for the use of children and elders,” said V.N. Paramasivam, Coimbatore district president of Tamil Nadu Tribal Association.
The settlement is situated 2.5 km away from the contour canal in an elevated area. Anna Nagar, near Sethumadai, the nearest town from the settlement, is 7 km away.
G. Babu, a resident of the settlement said that a wider bridge with railings will ensure safety for residents.
“The water in the canal is sometimes about 18 feet deep. Several animals including elephants have fallen into the canal and died,” said Mr. Paramasivam.
Rotary office-bearers met Coimbatore District Collector K. Rajamani on Thursday seeking necessary approvals for aiding the construction of a wider bridge across the canal with the technical guidance of the Public Works Department (PWD).
According to G. Sakthivel, secretary of Road Club of Coimbatore Town, the Collector assured them that necessary approvals will be ready in a week.
"The approval of the PWD is essential as it maintains the canal though it passes through ATR. We hope that the authorities would give proper approvals for the construction of the bridge at the earliest," added Mr. Paramasivam.