Chennai: An integrated flood alleviation project at a cost of Rs 600 crore will be taken up to prevent flooding in the southern part of Chennai and this project upon completion will prevent flooding in Mudichur, Perungalathur, Kovilambakkam, Pallikaranai, Velachery and Narayanapuram, higher education minister K.P. Anbhazhagan said on Friday.
The minister who was addressing the agitated Mudichur residents explained that the project will be taken up immediately and assured temporary flood mitigation measures on a war footing. Earlier in the day residents of Velachery Ram Nagar and Mudhichur vacated the ground floor of the buildings they were residing and took shelter on the first floor.
Youngsters of Bharathi Nagar Main Road in West Tambaram come out of their flooded house on Friday. (Photo: DC )
A few of them also vacated the houses and the parking lots remained vacant. “On Thursday night local youngster in these areas held discussions and we decided to move to the first floor after shifting TV, fridge and washing machines, but there were no alert or assistance from state authorities” rued Vijaya Kumari, a resident of Tambaram Krishna Nagar.
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“We have lost hope in the municipality and the government so I shifted all my belongings to the first floor and we have to help ourselves”, rued K. Shakila, who resides in Lakshmipuram. “The entire Mudichur road is overflowing with water and we fear the rerun of 2015 floods”, she added.
“Goodwill Nagar, Royappa Nagar, Bharathi Nagar and CTO colony suffered waterlogging and we are making efforts to divert the rainwater”, said a local revenue official, adding that there are problems only in the low lying areas which were either catchment or cultivable lands till 2000.
Despite downpour, reservoirs still below
20 per cent storage level
The heavy downpour saw flooding of city roads and there were also cases of water bodies like Naryanapuram lake, Kovilambakkam lake and Rettai Eri filling up, but reservoirs that meet the drinking water needs of Chennai recorded below 20 per cent storage level on Friday. All four reservoirs despite an inflow of 2,000 cusecs of water recorded a meagre 2,114 mcft water against the total storage capacity of 11,057 mcft. During same date last year, the storage was 1,276 mcft. Chembarambakkam, Red Hills, Cholavaram and Poondi received an inflow of 2,400 cusecs.
Why Foreshore estate, Madipakkam
Suffer waterlogging
It is due to poor planning and concrete roads. Under the mega city project, the local administration department mooted the concretisation of roadworks in Chennai. According to city corporation sources more than '300 crore has been spent on concrete roads in the past three years and this has now evolved as the major villain choking new interior roads in Madipakkam and Foreshore estate. “The recently laid concrete beach road between Seenivasapuram Nagar via Foreshore estate connecting Santhome flooded the fishing hamlets and the Foreshore estate. The road level was raised by half a foot and there is no drain. The concrete structure also flooded the EB sub-station resulting in a power outage,” said K. Arokiaraj, fishermen of Dumingkuppam.
Now, North Chennai is facing
Health hazard
Labour dominated North Chennai and its slums were choked with sewer overflow on Friday. The fresh rains added to the existing woes of the public. Visit by DC to Decastor and Demollows road in Pulianthope exposed poor drainage facilities and the only respite was that corporation authorities were conducting medical camps and distributing bleaching powder and paracetamol. “Otteri and Pulianthope, witnessing waterlogging for the last three days, are in a total mess and need more water pumps and super suckers to clear the drainage slush,” said social activist V. Sathiabalan.
