Residents in 18 villages protest against merger with Tiruvannamalai Corporation

Residents of 18 villages surrounding the Girivalam path near Arunachaleswarar temple protested against the merger with Tiruvannamalai Corporation at the Office of Collectorate in town on Tuesday.

Agitated residents said that the merger deprived residents in these affected villages, especially women, of getting work under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) scheme for the past several months.

Each affected village, on an average, has nine wards with around 5,000 residents. “The merger of villages with the Corporation has also increased taxes on basic amenities like water supply, garbage removal, and houses. Despite the increase in taxes, civic amenities in affected villages around the town have not improved,” Arul Arumugam, a social activist and organiser, said. 

Some of the affected villages include Adi Annamalai, Endal, Nochimalai, Devanandal, Navalanpalayam, Chinnakangiyanur, Vegaikaal, Adaiyur, Savalpoondi, and Athiyandal around Girivalam path. 

Of the total 14 km of the Girivalam path, six kilometres come under the limits of the Adi Annamalai panchayat that takes care of the daily maintenance of the path, while the remaining areas belong to Tiruvannamalai Corporation.

Despite their closeness to the temple town, affected villages depend on agriculture and related activities. Most of the residents are farmers and petty traders. They were also employed as workers under the MGNREGA scheme to dig ponds and water channels.

As the villages were located near reserve forests (RFs), women workers were roped in to create water facilities inside the forest for animals in the wild. Residents said that despite the merger of the villages with the Corporation in January, basic facilities like water supply, bitumen roads, streetlights, daily garbage removal, and health care have not been on par with core areas in Tiruvannamalai town.

Agitated residents gave petitions to revenue officials at Collectorate and dispersed peacefully after assurance from officials that necessary steps will be taken. Corporation officials said that around 20 surrounding villages were merged with the civic body to upgrade itself into a corporation from the erstwhile municipality status. It could help the corporation seek additional funds from international banks to undertake various civic and infrastructure works within its limits.