Delay in River Adyar clean-up causes mosquito menace

According to official sources, a whopping Rs 104 crore was allotted for the department to carry out the work. But the department is yet to start the restoration and the water body has been turned into a hot spot for mosquito breeding. As a result, residents of Adyar and adjoining areas are complaining of mosquito menace.

A resident of Gandhinagar, Meera Ravikumar, said, “We have represented the issue with the Greater Chennai Corporation. In addition, we wanted to raise this issue with the authorities of the PWD as cleaning up the river comes under its jurisdiction. This monsoon, we are facing a huge problem due to mosquito menace. We wish the department concerned will take up an action to bring a solution.”

Rasika Ramesh of Reciprocity Foundation said, “The government is in the middle of executing their plan, which spans for seven years. The foundation has cleaned the river twice in the past few months alone. With the aid of volunteers, the foundation removed nearly 500 kilograms of plastic waste from the river,” she added.

The government has allotted Rs 555.46 crore to execute the third phase of the Adyar River Eco-Restoration Project in the last year. Under this project, the PWD will carry out the cleaning works from Tiruneermalai to Kotturpuram.

An expert in waterbody restoration said, “The hyacinths have the potential to serve as a breeding ground for mosquitoes. But there are certain conditions that support this system. If a river has an inflow of contaminated water and foul smell emanating from it, the possibility of mosquitoes breeding in it is high. It is unlikely if the river has a free-flowing water.” 

An official in-charge of Kosasthalaiyar River basin said, “Except PWD, all the other departments have started working under the Adyar River Eco-Restoration Project. We have floated a tender and expected to undertake the works in the month of January. Under the Chennai Rivers Restoration Trust (CRRT) project, we would undertake all the works, including the removal of hyacinths and desilting,” the official added.

“We are removing the hyacinths every year. They will reoccur as long as the river witnesses an inflow of sewage water. As a permanent solution, the CMWSSB will be installing Sewage Treatment Plants (STP) to purify the sewage before letting to flow inside the river. This should arrest the growth of hyacinths in the waterbody permanently,” he added.