Monsoon's here but Chennai isn't rain-ready

CHENNAI: Be cautious when you step out of your home during rains as well as after the rains. The metropolis, due to incomplete storm water drain works and shoddy road repairs, is full of death pits as protruding iron rods and brimming water in such pits have become a deadly combo. The civic body, despite several roads remaining in a perilous state, has repeatedly promised that all the potholes will be repaired before October 20 but is still clueless about fixing the mess.

When DT Next visited several parts of the city, it was found that most of the roads are full of potholes. In some roads, where the storm water drain works are stopped midway, earth taken out from the pits lies along the incomplete drains. When it rains, the earth would spread to the relatively better portion of the roads making them slippery. On the roads, where the construction of drains is completed, the civic body is yet to repair the dug-up portion with cement concrete as promised.

N Ravi, a rental car driver, said he has to spend most of his time on the road due to the damaged roads. “Potholes on the roads cause heavy traffic during peak hours. Due to this, picking up and dropping off passengers is delayed, affecting the daily income,” said Ravi, whose livelihood depends on the road.

Facing similar problems, residents of Rangan Street and Ramanathan Street in T Nagar sent an email complaining to the Chennai Corporation senior officials pointing out that the construction of storm water drain work started 20 days ago but the work is dragging on.

“Moreover, the main gate of a government-aided school in Ramanathan Street is closed for two weeks due to the storm water drain works. The students are forced to enter and exit through an emergency exit,” a resident of T Nagar said.

When asked, an executive engineer, attached to one of the north Chennai zones, blamed the people for being in a hurry and refusing to wait for the concrete to set. “Soon after workers patch the potholes with the concrete cold mix, motorists ride over them. This loosens the concrete,” he said.

He also pointed out poor coordination between the Metro Water and Electricity department in digging up the roads.

It may be noted that the civic body took measures to procure 100 tonnes of cold mix to repair pits dug for storm water drain works and allowed local engineers of wards to spend up to Rs 10 lakh for filling the potholes. “We have permitted the engineers to spend additional amounts if required to repair potholes,” the engineer added.

‘Faulty motor pumps sent for repair’; clogged sewer pipes cause for concern

While incomplete storm water drains on the sides of roads are expected to bring one set of hardships, underground sewer lines may bring severe kind of headaches as several manholes overflowed during unprecedented rains before the onset of monsoon.

One example is Kamarajar Road in Virugambakkam. During the recent rains, a manhole of an underground sewer line on the road overflowed making the road a pool of sewage. “The sewage remained on the road for two days causing difficulties to pedestrians and two-wheeler riders,” Gopinath, a motorist, who uses the road regularly said. He added that human waste was seen floating on road due to the overflow. “After complaints, workers pumped out the sewage using machines,” a resident said.

Worsening the situation, sewage leaked from the manhole entered incomplete storm water drain pits resulting in mosquito breeding along with accident threats to the motorists. “When the rainwater and sewage lying stagnant on the road, it is difficult to find where the storm water drain pits are. Due to clogs in sewer lines, residents could not use toilets when it pours as water would not go,” a resident said.

As this is the condition of sewer lines in many parts of the city, defunct motors at the sewage pumping stations are cited as a reason for the problem.

When asked, a Metro Water official said that around 15 motor pumps have been found in a faulty condition and have been sent for repair. “Also, contractors who maintain the pumping stations are asked to keep their men during night hours to attend to emergencies,” he added.