Focus on southern suburbs, say Chitlapakkam residents

CHENNAI: With the city managing the heavy monsoon rains effectively till Friday at least, thanks to the newly constructed storm water drains and motor pumps placed in vulnerable spots, residents in southern suburban areas fear flash floods as lakes in the region are not interconnected properly due to missing links.

Dayanand Krishnan, a Chitlapakkam resident and GIS expert, said that the missing links between the lakes are not established properly leaving the southern parts of the locality susceptible to floods.

“As of now, the lakes are not filled. But once they reach their full level, surplus will enter the streets. Just around 4 cm to 5 cm in the catchment areas of Selaiyur and Chitlapakkam lakes will cause flash floods in Chitlapakkam,” he warned.

On Friday morning, Manickavasagar Street, Ramanar Street, Dhenupureeswarar Street and others were inundated.

Dayanand urged authorities to expedite the cut and cover drains that were taken up in 2018. The missing link between Selaiyur surplus canal and cut-and-cover drain of Chitlapakkam lake should be completed to prevent flooding in Ramakrishnapuram, Subash Chandra Bose street, Maraimalai Adigal street, Ramanar street and Maruthupandiyar.

“Also, missing links to connect Sethunarayanan Street Pond to Maraimalai Adigal Street, and Babu Street Junction to Shanthi Avenue upto Sembakkam lake need to be established. Upper link from Selaiyur Lake surplus channel upto Chitlapakkam Lake through Kamarajar Street and Kannagi Street should be constructed,” he pointed out.

P Viswanathan of Chitlapakkam Residents Associations Coordination Committee said that the Tambaram Corporation is not letting run-off rainwater into the Chitlapakkam Lake. “They say it prevents mixing of sewage into the lake. There is an inlet on the west side of the lake. Instead of opening the inlet and letting run-off into the lake, water is being diverted around the lake. This causes inundation in southern parts of Chitlapakkam. Rainwater from Tambaram East flows towards the western side of the lake,” he explained.

When asked, M Elangovan, Tambaram Corporation Commissioner, explained that run-off water is prevented from entering Chitlapakkam Lake for the first 30 minutes of the rainfall. “Once it becomes clear, we’re letting water into the lake,” he said.