Natham residents oppose merger of their village with town panchayat

Villagers from Maninagaram at the Collectorate in Ramanathapuram on Thursday.
| Photo Credit: L. BALACHANDAR

 

Residents of Natham Maninagaram village in Kamuthi taluk protesting against merger of their village with a nearby town panchayat, submitted a petition with the district administration in Ramanathapuram on Thursday. 

The district administration had recently announced merging of the village with Abiramam town panchayat.

Villagers opposed the move saying they would lose their livelihood, which was solely dependent on the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA). As the village did not have industries, shops and other commercial establishments, they ran their lives through MGNREGA and farm works, said Mariswari, one of the petitioners.  

If the village was merged with the municipality, they would have to pay all the taxes starting from property to water tax. Due to the merger, they would lose their job in addition to managing the extra expenses, she added.