In a powerful display of environmental stewardship and civic engagement, Coimbatore City Round Table 31 (CCRT 31) and Coimbatore City Ladies Circle 16 (CCLC 16), in partnership with Siruthuli, a prominent water conservation NGO, organized a record-setting initiative: 500 Trees Planted by 500 Students in Just 50 Seconds, around the restored Mariamman Temple Check Dam in Kovaipudur.
The event was supported by Stalwart Group of Companies and VLB College of Arts & Science drew participation from civic leaders, students, and environmental champions alike.
The tree-planting event took place in the presence of R. Vetriselvan, Deputy Mayor, Coimbatore City Municipal Corporation; Sujani Balu, Steering Committee Member, Siruthuli; Ragulan Shekar, Area Chairman, Round Table India ; D. Kalaivani, Principal, VLB College of Arts & Science ; Tr. Lakshmiganth Krishnan, Chairman, CCRT 31, R.S. Vidhya, Chairperson, CCLC 16; - D.R. Koushik, Area Vice Chairman; Mandhagini Thulasi, Area Vice Chairperson and Tr. Vishnu Prabhakaran, National Secretary, Round Table India.
Located between Arivozhi Nagar and Kovaipudur, the 1.5-acre Mariamman Temple Check Dam has a storage capacity of 6 million litres. The region has been plagued by severe water scarcity, with borewells running dry even at 1,000 feet depths. Due to neglect, the existing check dams had become ineffective, unable to retain water or recharge groundwater.
In October 2024, Siruthuli initiated desilting and rejuvenation of the check dam. Since then, the dam has filled five times, cumulatively storing and recharging an estimated 30 million litres of water into the groundwater table — a remarkable feat in less than a year.
“Saving water and treating sewage are no longer optional — they are critical. We thank Siruthuli for executing this project with efficiency, and we’re proud that our initiative will contribute to Coimbatore’s water resilience,” said Tr. Lakshmiganth Krishnan, Chairman, CCRT 31.
The crowning moment of the event was when 500 students from VLB College of Arts & Science planted 500 saplings in just 50 seconds, creating an instant green cover around the check dam. This rapid mass plantation was made possible through exceptional coordination and enthusiastic student participation.
Special acknowledgment was given to Ms. Jaishree Suryakumar Santhosh, CEO, VLB College of Arts & Science, for mobilizing the students and Mr. Christopher Arvinth, MD, Stalwart Group of Companies, for funding the restoration project to the tune of Rs.13 lakhs.
“The restored stream and bund plantations will not only recharge groundwater but provide habitat for birds and prevent soil erosion. This is environmental mindfulness in action,” said Sujani Balu, Steering Committee, Siruthuli.