Public desilt pond in park, await Corpn help to remove earth

“We had been requesting the authorities to desilt the pond for several months, but they did not pay heed. So, along with local residents’ welfare association, walkers collectedRs 35,000 among themselves and desilted the park recently,” Narayanan, a resident said.

He added that the earth from the pond is lying on the bunds and during rains, it would flow into the pond again. “We could not take the earth outside the park due to several reasons.We are expecting the officials to step in,” he said.

Meanwhile, the residents are also unhappy over the maintenance of the park by the private contractor, who has been awarded the tenders to maintain parks in Kodambakkam zone.

Another resident pointed out that the civic body had allocated only around Rs 40,000 per month for the maintenance of the park, which is insufficient.

When contacted, an official attached to Kodambakkam zone said that the residents had approached them seeking permission to desilt the pond and the civic body allowed them to carry out the work. “However, we do not receive any complaint regarding the removal of earth. We are happy to help the residents and will direct the local engineer to attend the issue immediately,” he said.