The drive to remove encroachments along the Adyar river, which began a month ago, has lost momentum as the Water Resources Department (WRD) is waiting for enumeration to be completed on some stretches.
The key objective of the eviction drive is to facilitate the widening and de-silting of the river.
While some sections, especially those in the southern suburbs, have been widened, there has not been much progress in areas such as Saidapet, Adyar and Manapakkam, as the enumeration process is yet to be completed there.
In some areas, work had to be abandoned as a result of resistance from residents. The department has been facing this problem in places like Mallipoo Nagar, Old Jothiammal Nagar, Annai Sathya Nagar and Thedeer Nagar. “Unless we clear encroachments, we will not be able to start work to improve the width of the river. Demarcation of river boundary will soon be started, in the city limits,” an official said.
“We have to wait till alternative housing is allotted. We have identified about 2,000 illegal structures along the Adyar river in the southern suburbs,” said an official.
District revenue authorities have already put up caution boards at Adhanur and Mannivakkam, asking people to move out of encroached areas on the banks of the river.
The widening of the river up to 60 metres on the upstream of the Chembarambakkam lake was possible as there were not many encroachments. The carrying capacity of the river in Irumbuliyur, Mudichur and Varadharajapuram has been increased to a minimum of 60,000 cubic feet per second.
WRD sources hinted that they needed more funds and support from various departments to expedite the process to improve the river.
