Amid flooding, Chennai residents hope for groundwater recharge

Rains and water stagnation affect traffic on key stretches

December 03, 2013 08:19 am | Updated 08:19 am IST - CHENNAI:

Plots such as the one in Kalaignar Nagar in Tiruvottiyur remained under sheets of water. Photos: B. Jothi Ramalingam

Plots such as the one in Kalaignar Nagar in Tiruvottiyur remained under sheets of water. Photos: B. Jothi Ramalingam

The rains on Monday may have inundated many stretches notorious for lack of proper drainage facilities, but it also brought cheer to residents who have been hoping for a good spell of rain to recharge the groundwater aquifer.

The northeast monsoon so far has been disappointing both in terms of the rains in the catchment areas of the city’s reservoirs and recharging the aquifers within the city through the domestic rainwater harvesting systems.

Traffic flow was affected on Monday morning as portions of roads including Santhome High Road, Flowers Road, Montieth Road, Jawaharlal Nehru Salai near Koyambedu, MGR Salai (that connects Rajiv Gandhi Salai and Taramani Link Road) and Rajiv Gandhi Salai were under sheets of water for some time. Many roads including Tiruvottiyur High Road became slushy.

“The water stagnated for sometime after the rain. It affected vehicular movement during the morning rush hour,” said R. Suresh, a resident of Choolaimedu.

Chennai Corporation and Highways Department workers were seen pushing water into drains to help clear the roads. Pumps were also used at some spots including at Koyambedu.

The cloudy day also brought some respite to residents who once again have to contend with two- hour power cuts.

As stormwater drains and the sewer system carried the rainwater from city roads, empty plots in the suburbs acted as catchments. For residents like Seshadri of Thoraipakkam whose house has gone below the road level, there is no other go but to continuously pump out water from inside his house. “Last year, I had knee-deep water inside my house. Now, as the water level rises on the road and enters my compound, I pump it back out to a nearby plot,” he said.

However, in some areas such as Kalaignar Nagar in Tiruvottiyur, the plots are getting filled up fast, worrying residents, who have been waiting for their roads to be laid.

S. Babu, secretary, Kalaignar Nagar Residents Welfare Association, said that the road-laying work worth Rs.2.40 crore should have been completed before the monsoon.

0 / 0
Sign in to unlock member-only benefits!
  • Access 10 free stories every month
  • Save stories to read later
  • Access to comment on every story
  • Sign-up/manage your newsletter subscriptions with a single click
  • Get notified by email for early access to discounts & offers on our products
Sign in

Comments

Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.

We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of The Hindu and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.