Flood-hit areas, including Kolathur, set for major revamp

MLAs in Chennai have started submitting the areas that were recently flooded and the reasons behind the waterlogging. Issues like sewer overflow, the incidence of low-lying electric cables, inadequate storm water drains, new pumping stations, disaster relief cooking centres are some of the issues that have been raised by the MLAs and the petitions have reached the municipal administration department and other government departments, the official said.

For example, Kolathur will now undergo a major change on three aspects, including flood alleviation, decongestion of traffic and uninterrupted power supply. The issues that the constituency faced during the recent deluge is ascertained and improvement works have already commenced, the official said.

According to the Secretariat sources, Egmore MLA I Paranthaman had also submitted a memorandum to Local Administration Minister KN Nehru seeking new pumping stations and additional storm water drains.

Health Minister M Subramanian had also made representation to the civic and municipal officials seeking permanent deployment of motors to drain out flooded subways. He had also urged the PWD to ensure parapet walls along Adyar river are intact. In the case of Chepauk-Triplicane the drains were narrow and laid several decades back, new lines with increased capacity are planned, sources said.

To handle sewer overflow and reduce flooding new pumping station is demanded in Vepery. Similarly, several interior roads and educational institutions lack storm water drains in Choolai, Pulianthope, Egmore and Doveton and we have submitted a note seeking new storm water drains, Paranthaman added.