Residents of the western parts of Chennai who are used to their streets getting flooded every monsoon may be in for a pleasant surprise next year.
In an effort to alleviate inundation in areas located downstream of Korattur lake, the Water Resources Department plans to improve the surplus course of the water body in Korattur and link it to Madhavaram tank. The new project will be taken up under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission.
Every year, residents of areas such as Kadhirvedu, Madhanangkuppam and Surapet, endure woes of inundation when the surplus water from Korattur lake spills over into their localities. This was because there was no defined route for the surplus course when it neared the Madhavaram tank. Residents have to wade through at least knee- deep water during rainy season.
“We decided to add this project worth Rs.25.65 crore under JNNURM as this has been a long-pending demand of the residents,” said an official. The surplus channel runs for a total distance of 2.6 km along residential localities before it joins Madhavaram tank.
A box culvert would be constructed for a distance of 770 metre along service roads of Chennai bypass road near Kadhirvedu to transmit surplus water to Madhavaram tank. The culvert will be four metres wide and two metres high. A shutter will be constructed in the lake to regulate the flow of surplus water into the waterway.
The department also plans to construct two bridges across the surplus course on Kadappa Road near Madhanangkuppam and near Vinayagapuram.
Now, residents of neighbouring localities, including Retteri and Puthagaram, have to take a detour of a minimum of seven km to reach Ambattur during rainy season as a portion of Kadappa Road, which is the shorter route to Madhavaram and Ambattur, gets washed away.
Though a culvert already exists near Madhanangkuppam, it often gets damaged during heavy flow in the surplus course. Residents said that the proposed bridge would be helpful in smooth flow of traffic on the road. “We have been grappling with problems of water logging for over a decade now. We get cut off from other areas during heavy rains. There have been instances when I had to carry additional sets of clothes as I had to wade through water three or four feet deep. Bridges across the waterway would be of great help,” said B. Jagan, a resident of Surapet.
Officials of the WRD said flood protection walls would be constructed wherever the bund of the waterway is weak. The bund of Madhavaram tank would also be strengthened. “We have proposed this project as an alternative to the diversion channel from Kolathur tank to Madhavaram tank. The project is being delayed due to protests against land acquisition,” said an official.
The project would be completed by August or September next year.
