With the rain relenting, life returned to normal in Vellore and surrounding districts on Tuesday.
Schools and colleges reopened and civic works including desilting of stormwater drains, relaying of damaged stretches, water pipelines and removal of garbage were taken up in Vellore, Tiruvannamalai, Ranipet and Tirupattur districts.
At present, 5,802 schools have been functioning in the four districts. A total of more than 10 lakh students are enrolled in these schools. Around 80% of students returned to classes on Tuesday. Some schools organised a welcome function for students, especially lower classes, as they were returning after Deepavali holidays.
“Streets where schools are located were levelled to ensure safety of students. Likewise, other civic works were also undertaken in the district,” Vellore Collector P. Kumaravel Pandian told The Hindu.
Within the limits of Vellore Corporation, Mr. Pandian inspected several areas including Old Town, Sarathy Mansion area, Green Circle, Officers' Lane and Sathuvachari that were affected by rain. Of the total 101 lakes, 53 lakes reached full capacity in the district on Tuesday.
Along with Ranipet Collector, D. Bhaskara Pandian, Mr. Pandian also inspected several low-lying areas along the Palar river including Poonai anaicut on Monday to relocate residents to safer places. A total of 74 temporary shelters have been set up in these two districts to accommodate rain-affected families. At present, only 33 persons, mainly from Ranipet, were in these shelters. A total of 139 houses were damaged in these districts. At 7 p.m on Tuesday, 9,426 cusecs of water was released from Palar anaicut in Ranipet district.
Girivalam festival
With the girivalam festival on, Tiruvannmalai has been allowing limited visitors owing to COVID-19 restrictions. From Wednesday, bus termini at Chengam Road, Kanchi Road and Thirukoil Road will be in operation. The district administration is also desilting major water channels that connect the town's biggest lakes. District Collector B. Murugesh inspected these works on Tuesday.
The major river, Palar, and its tributaries including Koundinya, Malattar, Ponnaiyur, Agaram Aru and Poyaru have been receiving water from catchment areas in Chittoor district.
In Tirupattur, more than 80% of the total 608 tanks in the district have reached their full capacity with excess rainwater being discharged.
