Chennai Corporation to complete 1,152 km SWD desilting by Oct 10, says Minister KN Nehru
Ahead of the northeast monsoon, the civic body has so far completed desilting 792 km of drains across the city and it has been intensified.
Storm Water Drain (SWD) desilting has been carried out in the city
CHENNAI: As much as 1,152 kilometers of Storm Water Drain (SWD) desilting has been carried out in the city and expected to be completed by October 10, said Municipal administration minister K N Nehru on Friday.
Ahead of the northeast monsoon, the civic body has so far completed desilting 792 km of drains across the city and it has been intensified.
The minister said, "Monsoon preparatory work has been intensified by the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) to tackle water logging in the city. So far, 792 km of storm water drain desilting has been completed and the remaining 1,152 kilometer drains will be finished by October 10. Also, of the total 1.09 lakh silt catch pits, the silt removed in 73,180 pits so far, and the remaining catch pits will be cleaned within the stipulated time. We have been using 12 excavators to remove water hyacinth in city water bodies and prevent water logging during the monsoon spells."
As many as 990 motor pumps of various capacities are on standby to drain stagnated rainwater in low-lying areas.
Additionally, 162 relief centers are ready, and 280 tree-cutting machines are prepared to remove fallen trees and branches.
In public kitchens at Chintadripet and Gopalapuram, provisions are kept ready to prepare meal packets for 1,500 people per hour.
"During the recent rain, several areas witnessed waterlogging and the officials have identified the areas and steps have been taken to identify the cause of stagnated water with appropriate measures. In the past two days, the monitoring officials for 15 zones have inspected the ongoing pre-monsoon works. We have ensured the Integrated Command Control Centre (ICCC) functions round the clock to attend to the complaints raised by the public and it will be intensified during the monsoon season," said Nehru.
On the other hand, the minister distributed 100 hand operated fogging machines valued at Rs 67 lakh to the workers to eradicate mosquitoes in the city ahead of the northeast monsoon.
He further added that to combat mosquito-borne diseases, at least 3,368 field workers are actively engaged.
A range of equipment is being used for mosquito control, including 319 fogging machines, 54 power sprayers, 156 battery-operated sprayers, 324 hand-operated fogging machines, 64 vehicle-mounted fogging machines, and drones.
