Work to construct a short-cut channel to carry surplus water from the Velachery Lake to South Buckingham Canal is facing hurdles, as there is no space to make precast concrete structures.
The Rs. 58.15 crore project is being implemented under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission, to prevent flooding in Vijay Nagar and other areas in Velachery.
As it takes time to drain floodwater from Velachery lake’s existing surplus course into the sea through Pallikaranai marshland and Muttukadu, the Water Resources Department (WRD) designed a new channel to reduce the distance by half, and drain the water into south Buckingham canal and then into the Adyar river.
Of the 4.1 km proposed for the channel, only a little over 1 km has been built so far, over the course of a year. In order to expedite the process, the WRD decided to make precast concrete blocks for the channel.
However, portions of the plant, set up to make these concrete blocks in Kaiveli, Pallikaranai, was demolished in an eviction drive carried out by the Kancheepuram Collectorate on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Officials of the WRD said this would further push the deadline of the project, as there was no alternative site nearby. “We need space to make and cure the blocks. We need 2,500 such blocks to complete the project,” said an official.
According to the district administration, the eviction drive was carried out to retrieve five acres of marshland. The WRD had not obtained permission from government agencies, including the Kancheepuram Collectorate and the Forest Department, to run the plant on the one-acre siteThe remaining space was used by traders dealing in firewood.
Keywords: Velachery Lake, surplus water channel, Buckingham Canal
The rainwater diversion scheme was implemented in fast pace in Madurai under the previous Government's tenure. Right from local Councillors to the top brass, they exploited the central government funding to initiate such a "waste of a project" with burden to tax payers. Crude construction practices with blunt edges that are a bane to motorcyclists and pedestrians and with no proper understanding of channelling the rain water based on road elevation.
This project was meant to be a disaster in Madurai as the implementors had to find a way to pocket money under the name of a scheme.
When will the public stand up against such wasteful Government spending? With no proper accounting, there is no light at the end of the tunnel.
Do you think this would happen in Singapore, China or Brazil? 4.1 pathetic kilometers, these
nations build dams in 3 years transporting water 400-500 miles! Lazy, corrupt, incompetent
and indifferent, these are the cornerstones of our work ethic.
The remaining space was used by traders dealing in firewood. How they were doing business all these days? Being a government project it would be prudent for the officials to allow the plant to function there till the work is over.
This is an excuse to delay the project further. The advantage of precast concrete is to make the blocks away from the site and ship them to where it is needed using trucks and install with cranes. The whole idea of WRD and locals is to build them with cast-in-situ concrete using manaul labour and double the cost. As a result,with cost over-runs, the available funds will dry out and the project left incomplete just like JNNURM sewage project in Coimbatore City
That works getting delayed due to lack of coordination among various
Govt. agencies is no news to Chennaiites. But being a Velacherian, it
beats me that an infrastructure project is going to be delayed for want
of clearance to put up a concrete plant. To my knowledge, that plant has
been there for nearly 2 years. It has taken this long for Kanchi
Collectorate to realize the lack of clearance. Even the contractor has
not bothered all this time to get clearance. Very sorry state of affairs
indeed!
"The WRD had not obtained permission from government agencies, including the Kancheepuram Collectorate and the Forest Department, to run the plant on the one-acre site"
-- WOW! What a way to execute a "Rs.58.15 crore project"!!
When will these govt. agencies coordinate their tasks?
Please Email the Editor