symbols of religious fervour, pride of the erstwhile princely state of Travancore and lifeline of Kanyakumari district in Tamil Nadu, the sacred water tanks have, in the past three decades, been disappearing into oblivion. Once serving as popular bathing sites for the local crowd which flocked there during festivals, the ponds have been victims of abuse and neglect to the extent that till recently most people nearby were unaware of their existence. Today the story has taken a new twist as more than 20 of them have surfaced again with the user groups pooling in their efforts and earnings to replenish the parched reservoirs.

Abandoned or partially used, these tanks now have either been fully restored or are in the final stages of renovation following the initiative taken by District Rural Development Agency (drda) and a participative programme by the Tamil Nadu government called