Lack of pathway forces TN villagers to take funeral procession through neck-deep river

TIRUPATHUR: Without a proper pathway to a burial ground along the banks of a river in Tirupathur district, the relatives of the dead have to move through neck-deep water to cross the river to perform the last rites.

It has been the norm for people of Old Athikuppam village, falling under Tirupathur block, to carry the body on their shoulders to cross the river.

It happened yet again on Thursday when 62-year-old Raman passed away. His relatives and fellow villagers blocked the road in their village demanding a permanent solution to the problem.

“This has been happening for a long. We have been demanding restoration of the pathway for accessing the burial ground but nothing materialised,” rued a villager.

They placed the body in the middle of the road during the protest. Local police and revenue department officers intervened to pacify them.

Later, the relatives of the elderly man carried his body on their shoulders to move through the neck-deep water to cross the Pampar river before performing the funeral.

A check dam raised across the river has led to water stagnating forever making things worse.

Earlier, the villagers of Old Athikuppam had been using a pathway running through private land owned by Jayaraman. Last year, he raised a fence around the land denying access to the villagers.

Revenue department officers said that Jayaraman erected a fence around his land last year after some people damaged his tree. When the villagers had complained against blocking the pathway, the Tirupathur Tahsildar issued Jayaraman a notice under section 133 of CrPC to remove the fencing and make the space available for public use.

However, he had approached Madras High Court and obtained a stay.

When queried about the issue, Tirupathur Tahsildar M Mohan said, “Steps are being taken to get the stay vacated. Once we can do it, the fencing can be removed and the pathway can be restored for public use.”

Yet, an alternative site was earmarked for the burial of bodies but the villagers are not willing to use it, instead, they are adamant about passing through Jayaraman’s land, he added.