A broken Chennai Metrowater pipeline near the ‘Medical Store' building on the Government Kilpauk Hospital campus is causing hardships to patients and the staff. They make their way gingerly between the small channels dug by the Public Works Department, which is in charge of the maintenance of the campus, to allow for the water to flow.
According to hospital staff, the damage was noticed a week ago and then the channels were cut. The seepage has resulted in a greenish slush behind the Cardiology ICU block. Vehicles parked near the slush get caught in the mud and drivers take help from those who have come to the mortuary to collect the remains of the dead to push the vehicles out.
A PWD official said that the construction work for Metro Rail at the hospital entrance was the cause for the damage to the Metrowater distribution pipeline. The pipeline below the ground level might have been damaged due to the vibrations during the construction work. “In case of a pipeline leak we would set it right but it is the main water line that has been damaged and it has to be set right by Metrowater,” the official said. For several weeks now, the hospital is also struggling to tackle the backflow of sewage, which has also been caused by the Metro Rail construction work. The water is literally going down the drain even as the hospital faces perennial water shortage. The PWD had dug three deep bores on the premises to meet the demand. But it is not proving enough and lack of sufficient water hampers the maintenance of the mobile toilets, resulting in the stench in the surrounding area.
