Tamil Nadu rains: Third day, no respite for Delta districts urban and rural parts face flood woes

TIRUCHY: The ongoing monsoon is in no mood to show mercy on coastal Delta as the region was battered for the third continuous day on Saturday. The heavy downpour left several villages marooned, inundated urban pockets and threw life out of gear. In rural parts, the worst-hit was the paddy crops yet again.

Also Read: Crops lost, life hit, rains cause all-round havoc in TN Delta region

For the past three days, the relentless downpour in Tiruchy, Thanjavur, Tiruvarur, Mayiladuthurai, and Nagapattinam almost all the areas were flooded, and water entered many houses. Many residential colonies were cut off from main roads due to inundation. Though there was comparatively less rainfall on Saturday, the water failed to recede from several spots, putting standing samba and thalady crops in danger of decay.

Farmers demand timely damage assessment and due compensation as they risk severe loss if the water does not drain in a couple of days.

In Thanjavur, the most affected localities were Vallundampattu, Neivasal, Melattur, Narasingamangalam, Ammapettai, Puthur, Saliyamangalam, Senpakapuram, Orathanadu, Rayanpettai and Karkudi. Farmers in these areas claim that at least 30,000 acres of paddy crops and 10,000 acres of horticulture crops have been submerged.

The farmers also charged that the desilting works were sloppy in these areas, which led to breaches in many water bodies, choking the water flow. They demanded the district administration to deploy officials to assess the damage and recommend compensation immediately.

Meanwhile, urban and suburban residential areas in Tiruchy saw inundation as canals were breached. The Tiruchy-Dindigul Highway was flooded as rainwater could not flow into the drains. Subsequently, Karumandapam residents staged a roadblock demanding the local body to clear the clogged stormwater drains. Mayor Mu Anbalagan rushed to the spot and pacified the protesting residents. The drainages were cleared later.

18-month-old boy drowns in canal

An 18-month-old boy drowned after accidentally falling into a canal while playing near the house in Thanjavur on Saturday.

Vinod and Monisha lived in Sethubavachatram, Thanjavur, with their daughter Harini (3) and younger son Dharnish. On Saturday, the toddler played in the house while Monisha was busy in the kitchen.

His sister did not notice him going out of the house. After her work in the kitchen was done, Monisha searched for Dharnish, but it went in vain.

Her neighbours came to her rescue, but unfortunately, they found the boy lying unconscious in the canal.

They rushed him to Peravurani GH where they declared the boy dead. Dharnish’s body was handed over to the parents after due formalities.