The Coimbatore Corporation has begun the storm water drain project.
The civic body is implementing the Rs. 180-crore project in seven packages in 31 zones under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM).
Engineers say rainwater will drain into Kovilmedu Pallam, Sanganur Pallam, Ganapathy Pallam and other natural drains and from there to lakes that dot the city's landscape.
In implementing the project, the engineers have divided the city's 72 wards into 112 zones.
In the first phase, the project is being implemented in only 31 zones, covering eight wards in full and 42 wards in part.
They have further divided the first phase into seven packages, which are being implemented in areas where the underground drainage facility is available.
Storm water from the areas will flow into Kovilmedu drain, the channel draining water into Selva Chinthamani tank, Sanganur Pallam and the channel draining water into Valangkulam tank.
The engineers say they are concrete lining the drains till the depth is 90 cm and using reinforced concrete thereafter. A total of 731 km of drain will be constructed in this phase.
K. Boopathy, Superintending Engineer, says the width of the drains has been decided based on rainfall in the catchment area.
“The engineers studied the rainfall intensity and topography before deciding on the width. They also took into account the slope of the area the drain will cover.”
Commissioner Anshul Mishra says to ensure quality, the Corporation is thinking of engaging faculty from reputed private engineering colleges to inspect the work.
