Motor boat operations suspended

The district administration has suspended, until further orders, motor boat operations in Yercaud Lake as drinking water supply from the lake is getting affected.

According to sources, a few villagers petitioned with District Collector Rohini R.Bhajibhakare recently that due to the thrust of motor boats, the water drawn from the lake for drinking water purpose turned muddy, making it unusable.

Based on the complaint, Ms. Rohini directed Tourism Department officials not to operate motor boats in the lake until further orders. A senior official said that the issue might be occurring due to low water level in the lake. “At present, we have eight motor boats with eight seats each and we charge ₹500 for a boat. The thrust from the motor might be turning water muddy as the water level was quite low in the lake. However, tourists can use pedal and roving boats,” the official said.

According to Panchayat officials, nearly 1.20 lakh litres of water is drawn from the lake every day and supplied to more than four villages here. Block Development Officer R.Ramachandran said that the water from the lake was supplied to over 1,000 residences in areas including Longilpet, Murugan Nagar and MGR Nagar. Despite purification, the water was quite discoloured.

Based on the public complaints, use of motor boats in the lake had been temporarily suspended and its services would be resumed once the water level improved.

Source: Read Full Article