Citizen Connect: Piles of debris on vacant plots, roadsides hinder lives of Ramapuram residents

Piles of debris left over from the three years of work on sewage pipes that happened in the entirety of Ramapuram is causing distress to passers-by as well as residents and shopkeepers of Mullai Nagar, Easwaran Nagar and Giri Nagar.

Ashok Venkat (46), a resident of Mullai Nagar, said, “Earlier, I used to wake up in the morning and walk to Manapakkam. Now, because of the piles of mud at every interval, the morning walk I used to enjoy so much feels like a task. I just stick to my treadmill at home now.”

Besides disturbing the lifestyle of many in the area, the piles of mud have also affected the income of many street vendors and roadside shops in the area. Gopal, who runs a fast food shop on Bajanai Kovil Street said, “My business has gone down terribly.

Nobody wants to stand near such mud piles and eat. Moreover, I spend more time ensuring my supplies are not ruined by the dust. It’s bad enough that the temperature is already hot, the compiled dust just makes everything so much more worse.”

“There is so much dust from the debris. I tie a shawl around my head when I walk on the streets to take a bus on the main road,” said Valli, a student of SRM Easwari Engineering College in Ramapuram.

Balaji, from Ramapuram Samuga Nalam Federation, said, “It is the result of the construction of the roads. Instead of clearing the debris then and there, it has been accumulated on the sides of roads and on vacant plots. Besides causing dust and breeding of rats, it looks really ugly, pulling down the image of the residential area.”

“Cleaning up the debris is on our agenda. All the piles of waste will be cleared up within the four or five days,” said a Corporation official, when contacted.