The residents of Mohammed Hussain Colony, Thirumalai Nagar, Jayanthi Nagar and Lakshmipuram are complaining about sewage contaminating the groundwater table. As a result, piped water supply to homes was also affected.
H. Chandra Bose, secretary, Mohammed Hussain Colony Residents Welfare Association, pointed out that the stormwater drain, which was constructed to carry flood run off water on Jawaharlal Nehru Salai, has become an outlet for sewage from the residential areas of Korattur.
Letting sewage into the stormwater drain was also causing other problems, including stagnation of rain water during the rainy season and sewage mixing with the water pipes installed on Jawaharlal Nehru Salai.
S. Mukesh, a resident of Thirumalai Nagar, complained that no preventive steps were being taken by the State Highways Department and the CMWSSB to plug the sewage water flowing into the storm water drain.
During the normal course, the rain water would flow into the stormwater drains on both sides of the Jawaharlal Nehru Salai and would drain into the Retteri Lake. The encroachment of the Retteri Lake was also causing problems for the upstream residents as the storm water drain provided along the Jawaharlal Nehru Salai has been blocked. Several hutments have come up, with the occupants being provided with ration and voter ID cards. The residents fault the Water Resources Department for not taking any steps to remove the encroachments by hutments on Kannagi Street along Retteri Lake.
Moreover, with a flyover coming up near the Retteri junction, the residents want the State Highways department to widen the storm water drain network, which is being constructed under the flyover to help drain out water faster.
