The northeast monsoon is around the corner, but some stretches of the city waterways are still waiting to be desilted. The reason: the Water Resources Department is yet to receive permission to go ahead with the desilting work there.
However, the department is confident of managing the floods as desiliting is already under way at other stretches of these waterways. This work is being carried out under various other schemes and with available funds.
Every year, by mid-September or early October, the department begins work to clear the floating garbage and desilt various waterways to ensure free flow of rainwater during the rainy season. But, it is now waiting for funds from the State government for its proposal to desilt major waterways and the surplus courses of water bodies.
Several machines are engaged in clearing the silt off the mouths of Cooum and Adyar rivers on a daily basis. Similarly, some stretches of Cooum river, including the one near Koyambedu, are being desilted under the Integrated Cooum River Restoration Plan. Sources also pointed out that under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission, parts of North Buckingham canal, Otteri Nullah and Virugambakkam Arumbakkam canal were being cleaned to improve these waterways.
Sand bags have also been kept ready to protect the vulnerable portions of the waterways and prevent flooding in the neighbourhood. Some of the stretches that are in dire need of desilting are the north arm of Cooum river, portions of Central Buckingham canal and Veerangal Odai.
While residents dread mosquito menace because of the stagnant flow in the waterways, the department hopes to clean the canals in a fortnight once the proposal is approved. The cleaning exercise will be continued till the end of the northeast monsoon, sources said.
Every year, funds to the tune of nearly Rs. 4 crore are sanctioned towards the project to clean over 200-km of various waterways. Since last year, dredging of the mouth of South Buckingham canal near Muttukadu and Pudupattinam were added as part of the monsoon preparedness work.
Surplus courses that bring inflow or carry surplus from the water bodies in Velachery, Keelkattalai, Sembakkam and Pallikaranai swamp are facing threat of flooding as they are yet to be cleared of silt.
