MADURAI: The constant refrain of the electorate that “they come once every five years and then forget about us” is being negated by a newly-elected MLA from Tiruparankundram, Dr P Saravanan.
A doctor by profession, Saravanan has come as an oasis of relief for the people of 20 villages battling water shortage in the face of severe drought by offering free water to Surakulam, Sambakulam, Valayankulam, Valayappatti, Eliyarpatti, Paarapathi, Sholankuruni, Periyar Nagar and Nallur among others.
Saravanan finds no merit in blaming the officialdom for the crisis, but chooses to focus on doing his bit.
“When I took the initiative, even the government officials were supportive. They even suggested a few villages where I could channel my efforts,” the MLA said.
The works commenced on Friday last with the ambitious aim of reaching out to 40 villages.
“We have already covered 20 villages within three days. The remaining villages too would be supplied water in the coming days. Currently, we are operating two water tankers of 12,000-litre capacity each. Soon, I shall try to deploy one more vehicle of 9,000-litre capacity,” said Saravanan.
Parrying questions on whether the outreach had political undercurrents, he said, “I have taken the initiative of my own accord. Though the party high command had instructed to reach out to the masses, I knew there would be such questions raised.”
And what has been the response? D Vidhya Priya, a housewife from Valayankulam, sums it up: “We were battling water crisis for the past two months, which assumed dangerous proportions in the past 15 days. Dr Saravanan’s initiative has been a godsend. We are urging him to ensure water supply twice a week.”
Dr Saravan does not plan to stop the outreach by supplying free water alone. He has sought permission from the Madurai Corporation to sink a borewell in Villapuram to address the water issue.
This is because unlike other constituencies in the district, Tiruparankundaram consists of both urban and rural areas. Needless to say, he plans to foot the bill of this initiative from his own pocket.