Varadarajapuram, Raiyapah Nagar residents in Tambaram suffer
The residents alleged that there were many trees uprooted in the area but none of the government officials visited their area to clear the trees
An inundated street in Peerkankaranai
CHENNAI: The annual nightmare of fighting water logging came back to haunt the residents of Varadarajapuram and Raiyapah Nagar. As flood water entered their houses on Saturday night, the residents sought help from NGOs and local youngsters to clear the uprooted trees and restore normalcy.
The residents alleged that there were many trees uprooted in the area but none of the government officials visited their area to clear the trees.
The irked residents of Varadharajapuram and Raiyapah Nagar blamed the civic officials in Tambaram and adjoining areas for neglect and demanded long term solutions.
"Water has entered my house and no idea about the damage to electronic items and vehicles and the annual trauma continues whenever it rains," said D Vijayakumar a local resident.
Also Read: Cyclone Fengal: Stormwater drain failures leave Chennai submerged
On Saturday as Kancheepuram and Chengalpattu districts received heavy rainfall due to Cyclone Fengal and inundated the streets of Varadharajapuram, Raiyapah Nagar, Mudichur, Mahalakshmi Nagar, PTC Quarters, Parvathy Nagar, and Lakshmi Nagar.
“We thought that our area would not be flooded like last year as the government said that culverts have been constructed and some of the culverts have been extended. But from Saturday night the water level went up nearly 5 feet and it entered the households. The people were helpless and could not even vacate the house as it became dark,” said R Karthick, a resident of Varadharajapuram.
“Staying in flooded rooms is not new for us because since 2015 the government has put us in this situation, and we are used to this now. Proper planning during the construction of the Outer Ring Road would have helped us to escape from floods,” said Sakthi Selvamani, the President of Varadarajapuram Welfare Association.
In Kancheepuram district the Vandalur-Walajabad Road near Padappai junction was also flooded due to rain and traffic was heavily affected. The reason for the flooding is the pending flyover work and, on both sides, the vehicles were moving at a snail pace.
In Chromepet and Pallavaram the GST Road Pallavaram-Thiruneermalai Road and the 200-feet Radial Road were also flooded completely, and traffic was affected. Many bikers had to walk with their vehicle after the engine choked due to water logging.