Tamil Nadu

Sewage, a threat to Kalingarayan bridge

Staff Reporter

PWD asked to maintain the 725-year-old bridge

Poor maintenance: Polluted Perumpallam Odai poses threat to the Kalingarayan bridge. —

ERODE: The problem at the Kalingarayan Canal bridge at Municipal Chatram, behind Anna Tex, is not just that of pollution and garbage. It is something more serious, demanding immediate attention of authorities concerned. Kalingarayan Canal, completed in January 1282 by Kongu chieftain Kalingarayan, passes over the Perumpallam Odai at the Chatram. “In its 56.5 mile-long journey, from Bhavani to Aavudiapalayam, the 725-year-old canal passes over Odai through a bridge, which is an engineering marvel,” says Pulavar S. Raju, a noted historian of the region.

The bridge is nearly 80-foot long, supported by 14 stone pillars, each at a distance of about five feet. The bridge’s base is made of flat stones, while the side embankments are built with brick-like structure and are plastered.

Mr. Raju says long after the construction in 1800 an English officer, Buchanan, who travelled the entire Kongu region wrote about the bridge in his travelogue on November 7, 1800. Subsequently, in 1832 the then Coimbatore Collector ordered renovation of the bridge. Today, however, with very poor maintenance the bridge faces a threat from sewage in the Odai. Of the 14 pillars, on at least six of them plants have found a firm grip, threatening to pull down the embankment which has already developed cracks. Despite the presence of minor cracks, what is surprising is that to date not a single drop of water leaks through the embankment. Enquiries with the Water Resource Organisation of the PWD reveal that the organisation proposes to take up a major repair work of the canal in November, for which the State Government will give permission soon. The work is estimated to cost Rs. 12 crore.

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