Chennai: It has been eight years since an additional water scheme to put an end to the scarcity was proposed at Maraimalai Nagar. Call it official apathy or change in administration, the proposal remains incomplete, resulting in a major water crisis in the suburb.
Despite the municipal council passing a resolution in 2009, the Maraimalai Nagar Kududhal Kudineer Thittam has failed to cater to the water demands of the suburb, which has more than 350 industrial units.
Former vice chairman of the municipality J. Shanmugam told Deccan Chronicle that the scheme saw a deadlock after the council was changed.
“Proposed at a budget of Rs 25 crore, the scheme focuses on sourcing Palar water from three wells of Chengalpet. Water condition would not have been this bad, had the scheme been completed,” J. Shanmugam added.
The municipality, with 21 wards and over a lakh people receives water only once in three days. Palar water is supplied to just 6 wards and the rest of the wards are dependent on the water from bore wells and reverse osmosis units, installed by the municipality. As water from the other sources is inaccessible for drinking, people from these 15 wards spend hefty prices on canned water.
Water reaches the residents of Maraimalai Nagar, after taking a circuitous route of 70 km. “The municipality is dependent on three wells in Kalpakkam, which reaches the place, through Nerumbur and Keerapakkam, a roundabout of 70 km. The need of the hour is an additional water scheme to fill up the demand,” T.Palaniappan, a resident said.
The municipality does not supply water to the industrial units, despite the latter paying annual tax, said sources, adding that the industries are involved in sourcing the water from individual bore wells.
“This is resulting in the depletion of the groundwater table. The municipality now has no authority over the industrial units to curb pollution, as the civic body supplies no water. A lot of unprocessed effluents are let into the water bodies by the industrial units,” revealed Shanmugam.
