Walajabad villagers protest seeking drinking water

CHENNAI: The villagers of Avalur in Walajabad protested against the Panchayat with empty water cans on Sunday for not supplying water for more than two weeks.

The Avalur village panchayat is in Walajabad near Kancheepuram and has a population of over 3,000 people.

A few months ago during the winter season, the pipeline that used to bring water to the village from the Paalar river was damaged.

At that time the pipes were replaced temporarily and the water was supplied to the people. Now, the pipeline got damaged again and for the past two weeks, the water was not supplied to the villagers.

Since there was no proper response from the panchayat officials, angry villagers on Sunday gathered in front of the primary health centre with empty water cans and protested by blocking the Walajabad road.

Soon, the Walajabad police and the panchayat officials who visited the spot held peace talks with them and promised that the pipeline will be repaired within a few days. Later, the villagers gave up their protest and dispersed. Following the protest, the traffic was affected for a while.