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Six additional reverse osmosis (RO) plants were inaugurated on the 14-km-long Girivalam path in Tiruvannamalai town for the benefit of pilgrims and tourists.
With this, the path now has 14 purified drinking water facilities. Each RO plant is located every one kilometre on the route.
Accompanied by Tiruvannamalai Collector K. Tharpagaraj, Minister for Public Works, Highways and Minor Ports, E.V. Velu, inaugurated the facility.
“Such safe drinking water facilities help reduce the use of plastic water bottles, which are dumped in the forest area along the path posing a threat to wild animals such as spotted deer,” said S. Vinoth, a pilgrim.
At present, the Girivalam path, which is maintained by the State Highways, has eight water purification plants that were set up in November 2021.
Each newly installed plant, which costs around ₹15 lakh, comprises separate chambers for purified and raw water with the capacity of the chamber for storing purified water being 1,000 litres.
Except for two RO plants, which get water from Sathanur Dam, the rest have borewells nearby to provide water round-the-clock.
During summer, especially on weekends and festivals, the additional plants will help meet the demand for water among the pilgrims.
Around 1.5 lakh visitors come to the town on holidays, when, on an average, a 1,000-litre container in a plant becomes emptied within 40 minutes after it is refilled.
The initiative aims at providing uninterrupted drinking water for visitors. It will also reduce the use of plastic water bottles. Out of the 350 kg-400 kg of waste generated on the path per day, over 60 per cent of them are plastic bottles.
Among the other amenities for visitors, concrete blocks have been laid on the widened footpath along the Girivalam path to ensure the safety of pedestrians, especially senior citizens.
