Palakkad, Tuesday 20 April 2010: Finance Minister T.M. Thomas Isaac inaugurated the transport of sand extracted from the Malampuzha reservoir at Thonikadavu, near here, on Monday.

The work is being done under the Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Scheme (MGNREGS). Forty truckloads of sand were transported from the reservoir on Monday.

Head load workers demanding manual loading of sand held up the movement of sand from Malampuzha for the last 10 days due to a blockade. The Minister said the work had to be mechanised because it needed to be over before the onset of the monsoon in June. Isaac said 190 registered head load workers in Malampuzha will not be able to do the work in the limited time available, he said.

Head load workers will be provided employment for 20 days in a month at a daily wage of Rs.300 per worker. They will be engaged in construction of small bunds, planting of saplings in catchment areas and so on, Dr. Isaac said.

All workers engaged in the removal and transport of sand from the reservoir will be given free lunch and refreshments. They will also get two sets of uniform and a cap. Workers will be provided transport facilities also, he said.

Work on road and drinking water projects in the Malampuzha area will be taken up in a time-bound manner, he added.