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Chennai corporation blames unseasonal rains for slow work on storm water drains

On September 1, Municipal Administration and Water Supply Minister KN Nehru said drains are ready for the ensuing northeast monsoon in Chennai.

The last week of August in Chennai witnessed moderate to heavy rainfall in many places across the city. The spell was unusual as Tamil Nadu usually gets its rain during the northeast monsoon which sets in during the second half of October. Commuters had to face traffic jams, gridlocks and waterlogging on the streets, all aggravated further due to partially completed storm water drain (SWD) works. The lashing of rains resulted in inundation of several canals that are under construction and also delayed SWD works that are currently underway in several parts of the city.

To prevent water stagnation on the roads and the residential areas during the monsoon, SWD projects in different parts of the city have been initiated by the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) with funds from the World Bank. The projects in the Kosasthalaiyar basin (covering areas such as Tiruvottiyur, Manali, Madhavaram and parts of Ambattur) and the Kovalam basin (covering Chennai’s southernmost areas) are expected to be completed only by 2024. Projects in Cooum and Adyar basins that cover central and south Chennai, were projected to be completed by this September. TNM visited many places where the construction works are underway to check whether these projects will be completed within the said period.

Construction debris is yet to be cleared from the construction site (TNM photo)

Chennai city was soaked with a foot of rainwater in T Nagar, Nungambakkam, and neighbouring areas, especially on August 21, when the city received up to 3.7 cm of rainfall. The looming deadline to complete the works meant that roads had been dug up in multiple areas. Riders who were heading towards Nungambakkam from T Nagar found it very difficult to ride their two-wheelers as the roads were flooded and the gridlock was caused due to the construction work of SWDs.

Near Benzz Park, a half-constructed, open canal made the going tough for commuters as they rode their vehicles, avoiding edging over the road where the canal was filled with rainwater. Within a week, the canal was cemented, but was yet to be properly completed. Even now, commuters have to wait, during the busy hours of the day, to traverse the road as traffic piles up. Earlier this week, near the museum stretch in Egmore, the inundated canal stopped construction work. Workers at the site had to spend a considerable amount of time pumping the water out of the drains, before resuming work.

Contrary to the assurances of the officials, who had said that 80 percent of the works would be completed before the onset of rains in October, work on a new canal began near Sampath Maaligai, on College road. It is unlikely that this project will be completed before the monsoon rains begin.

“With the ongoing rain in the capital city, there can be a delay in the SWD project. Workers will have to pump water out of the ditch and it will take more time than estimated, if the spell continues. Practical difficulties also caused delays in this project, as we needed to get clearance from traffic, electricity board and other departments,” said MS Prashanth, Deputy Commissioner (Works) at GCC.

“The storm water drain on both Cooum and Adyar river basins were already completed after the 2015 flood to withstand 40 mm of rain per hour. But now, the drains are constructed to withstand the 70 mm of rain in the core city areas, as per the standards set by the Central Public Health and Environmental Engineering Organisation (CPHEEO),” he further added. GCC also advanced desilting work in May, to identify the clogged areas and remove the silt. “During desilting works, we also identified older drainages and renovated them,” he told TNM.

Storm water drain project Chennai


Storm water drain project (TNM Photo)

Three different types of projects have taken place in the core city under different agencies. The World Bank-funded Tamil Nadu Urban Sustainable Projects have been completed up to 75 percent. According to Prashanth, this project work will be completed before the monsoon begins. This project is being implemented at a cost of Rs 120 crore and is concentrated around core city areas like Royapuram, Anna Nagar, Adyar, Kodambakkam and Teynampet. Under this project, the dilapidated SWDs are being restored and link drains are being created in 144 places. Under the Infrastructure and Amenities fund, Rs 27 crore has been allocated for smaller works and these works have been completed upto 60 percent.

The Singara Chennai 2.0 Phase 1 focuses more on SWD works and is being carried out in Seethammal Colony in Teynampet, Vembuliamman Street in Kodambakkam, Rajamannar Road, Bazullah Road, Ashok Nagar and KK Nagar and other areas of the city and 85 percent of these works have been completed. Phase 2 is also expected to be completed before the monsoon. This phase focuses more on street level, isolated pockets where flooding is frequent and the roads are situated in low-lying areas.

On September 1, Municipal Administration and Water Supply Minister KN Nehru said drains are ready to handle the rush of water ensuing from the northeast monsoon in Chennai. Speaking to the media in his home district, he said that about Rs 1,000 crore was spent on SWD works to mitigate the flood situation in Chennai. According to him, core city area projects were in various stages of construction, with 70 percent of the work being finished in some areas, and only 40 percent being completed in other areas.

Source: The News Minute