There seems to be no end to the onslaught on waterbodies located on the fringes of the city. Untreated sewage freely flows into Keelkattalai and Moovarasampet portions of the lake from various areas of Old Pallavaram. It has been in the spotlight for over a decade with the residents and environmentalists fighting a fierce battle with the local body and other government agencies to protect the waterbodies.
While the struggle resulted in the government taking steps last year to prevent contamination, discharge of raw and untreated sewage has commenced again.
K Srinivasan, a resident, told The Hindu that “for the past three months, despite our pleas, raw sewage has been allowed to stagnate in storm water drains and vacant plots have been serving as mosquito breeding ground. Our complaints to Pallavaram Municipality have not elicited any response so far though the areas have been provided with underground drainage facility”.
Pointing out that the State government had spent considerable amount of tax payers’ money in creating the stormwater drains, residents said it would all go waste if this form of pollution went unchecked.
The lake such as Pallavaram Periya Eri, Keelkattalai and Moovarasampet, despite losing ayacut areas, helped in recharging ground water in domestic wells for a few square km around it. Water quality in both the lake and the wells would irreversibly deteriorate if the contamination continued.
Making it clear that no one had the right to let out the sewage in places other than the designated spots such as the one at Perungudi for instance, officials of Municipal Administration and Water Supply Department said they would ensure that this contamination was stopped at the earliest.
