M. Ilayarani, a fisherwoman, draws drinking water from a hand pump inside the Vellapallam Government High School, as residents of the coastal hamlet continue to struggle due to lack of a regular water supply.
| Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
Residents of the coastal fishing hamlet of Vellapallam in Vedaranyam taluk are facing an acute drinking water crisis, forcing them to depend on a nearby government high school for water, a situation that is disrupting both daily life in the village and classroom activities.
The hamlet, home to around 580 families, does not have a functional piped drinking water supply. Though pipelines were laid years ago — including during the post-tsunami rehabilitation phase and later under the Jal Jeevan Mission — water rarely reaches households, residents said. When it does, it reaches only a few homes intermittently.
With groundwater in the area having turned saline and a public well near Manamathan Koil Theru lying defunct due to lack of maintenance, villagers say they have been left with no option but to collect water from a borewell located inside the government high school, nearly half a kilometre away.
“We have no choice. This is the only place where we get usable water,” said M. Ilayarani, a fisherwoman. “Women and children walk back and forth throughout the day just to collect a few pots of water.”
Residents said people enter the school premises at all hours to draw water from the hand pump, which has begun to affect the functioning of the school. “There is noise and movement throughout the day. It disturbs students during class hours,” said R. Chellammal, another resident.
Echoing the concern, R. Banumathi said the situation has also led to damage to infrastructure. “Pipes inside the school have gone missing. This is not intentional, but desperation pushes people to do things they normally wouldn’t.”
The hamlet is largely inhabited by small-scale fisherfolk who depend on daily fishing for their livelihood. Residents said they had repeatedly raised the issue with officials, pointing out that despite extensive road digging for pipeline installation under the Jal Jeevan Mission, water supply has not materialised. “Not even Kollidam river water reaches us regularly,” they said.
When contacted, a senior official of the Tamil Nadu Water Supply and Drainage (TWAD) Board said the issue would be looked into.
Published – December 29, 2025 07:46 pm IST
