The Sitheri Main Canal feeds several lakes and tanks in Bahour, the rice bowl of Puducherry. | Photo Credit: Special Arrangement more-in Lieutenant Governor Kiran Bedi on Sunday said that heavy machinery will be engaged for cleaning the Sitheri Main Canal, which feeds several tanks and lakes in Bahour, the rice bowl of Puducherry. As part of Ms. Bedi’s weekend morning round-up, she, along with her Raj Nivas staff visited the Sitheri Main Canal. Ms. Bedi said the canal was earlier being cleaned manually with funds from the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MNREGS). But a visit to the site revealed that manual cleaning was putting human life at risk of snakebites and other health risks. Hence, it was decided to replace manual cleaning with earth movers to clear the channel for a distance of 7 km. Raise funds through CSR Since PWD officers on site said that the department had no money, it was decided to raise funds under the Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) to get the work done. The Lt. Governor said the sponsoring companies could directly pay to the contractor on completion of the work. Companies willing to support have already been contacted. Those companies that are willing to support the initiative will be felicitated on October 2 as part of the Swatchta programme. The cost of cleaning the canal running to a length of a few kilometres is estimated at ?6 lakh. The work will be supervised by the PWD officials. The maintenance of the canal could also be taken up by companies under their CSR activities, she added.

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