Flood preparedness starts in Ennore

Representatives from the fishing villages of Ennore met the Disaster Relief Commissioner Mr. K. Satyagopal and offered a memorandum, demanding immediate steps such as desilting and de-clogging the Buckingham canals and its feeder canal, removing fly-ash from the Ennore creek and clearing construction debris dumped into the Kosasthalaiyar river. This was followed by a public demonstration and an online campaign, which garnered more than 5000 signatures. 

The de-silting work on the Ennore creek has begun, causing a sigh of relief to the fishing community. As per environmentalists monitoring the area, the Tangedco started removing the fly-ash that was dumped in the Buckingham Canal on the north of the power plant in Puzhuthivakkam. Pooja Kumar, researcher at the Coastal Resource Centre, said, “The earthmover got stuck in the fly-ash slurry, which was extremely deep. On the morning of October 12, we saw dredging happening in three places. Below the conveyor belt at Vallur Thermal Power Station, during the construction of this belt, the opening of the Buckingham Canal into the Ennore Creek was blocked. Now, the area has been dredged and water is flowing without obstruction.” 

R L Srinivasan, President of the Kattukuppam Fishermen’s Cooperative Society, said the Buckingham Canal’s entry into the Ennore Creek blockage has been removed. “There is a need to restore the area to its original depth, which was more than 10 feet,” said the fisherman.