SYMA quenches thirst of people at Triplicane

Election fervor too is on ! ~ now in Govt Offices, it is time to take a vow to vote ethically in the May 16 Assembly elections. It is our duty to vote.  When we vote, we can make government better or worse. In turn, our votes can make people’s lives better or worse.  Let us all vow to vote in this election honestly, fearlessly and without taking money and without being influenced by any undue inducement.

It is summer in Chennai ~ and it seethes hot mid-day.  People are thirsty ! – there could be plenty of options to quench thirst besides tap water. Soft drinks, diet soft drinks, fruit juice, flavoured waters, vitamin-enriched waters, milk, soy beverages, even coffee and tea contribute to one’s  daily water requirements. But while all of these beverages hydrate one’s body, they're not created equal when it comes to weight control or health.  Humans  can't live without water. It delivers oxygen and nutrients to cells, flushes toxins from organs, regulates body temperature, keeps your skin moist and cushions your joints.  According to experts,  plain water is your best hydration choice: It's calorie-free and void of additives.

Thirst is the craving for fluids, resulting in the basic instinct of animals to drink. It is an essential mechanism involved in fluid balance.  Continuous dehydration can cause many problems, most often associated with renal problems and neurological problems such as seizures.  When a person is thirsty, a drink of water can be very satisfying, but after the thirst has been quenched, drinking more can be unpleasant. Researchers scanned the brains of people as they drank water. Brain areas involved in emotional decision-making lit up in the scanner when people drank in response to feeling thirsty, whereas regions involved in controlling movement kicked in when people forced themselves to keep drinking after quenching their thirst.

Whether we know Science or not, we all feel thirsty and look for quality water when in hot ! ~ and Srinivas Youngmens Association, (SYMA) Triplicane,  feels its duty to do something for common man.  As you know, SYMA has been serving the society without any recompense since 1977.  Providing water is not entirely new idea, political parties do with some fanfare every summer.

Chennai was marooned in Dec 2015 and that might affect the political fortunes of parties ! – water, has played a major role in electoral politics.  About a century ago, things were different – subjects were initially dependent on shallow wells and later on Municipal water taps – people trying hard on hand-pumps was common at every house and at every streets. That water in the tap came from local pumping stations and primarily from the Kilpauk water works.  Kilpauk Water Works holds several historical monuments and systems that were in use till about half decade ago.  Inaugurated a century and a couple of years back,  Kilpauk Water Works was the first treatment plant for the city with 80 million litres a day capacity then.

Remember your school days…. [if you are 40+] ~ there used to be rusted iron pipes from the water tank……. Students would line before the water tank [very thought would make modern day youngsters and mothers scary] – there would be no tumblers or receptacles,  one would  open the tab / lift the nozzle, keep one’s hand in a manner that falling water would find its way to the mouth……none cared to check of its purity, taste, colour, odour and more…….. a few decades earlier, perhaps none would have imagined that water would be ‘crore industry – with multi-brands’ ruling the market…life has changed since !!  Water today is a hot selling commodity – with Multinationals and big Corporates having their own brands and another chunk being garnered by local companies calling themselves ‘packaged water providers’.  From potable water to mineral water, as it was sold in the beginning……  mineral water actually, is water from a mineral spring containing various minerals such as salts and sulphur compounds, much water has flowed…..

 Though the packaged water that you get in bottles / cans of various capacities…… may not even be chemically treated water containing any minerals ~ people are finicky, most cannot drink water in hotels, restaurants and public places but buy mineral water bottles – some cannot survive without specified brands.

Without dwelling more at length, SYMA thought it fit to arrange ‘thanneer pandal’ – providing quality drinking water to common man.  It has been put to action and is running for a fortnight now.  A RO plant has been put up and there is a water tap outside SYMA Office at 29 TP Koil Street, Opp to Barathiyar Illam, nearer Sri Azhagiya Singar sannathi, Thiruvallikkeni.  Quality water is available to public right from 7 am in the morning till 7 pm in the evening.  Even after SYMA medical facility is closed at around 7 pm, water would be available in the tap for an hour or so.

With regards – S. Sampathkumar

10^th May 2016.