Experts have suggested effecting natural drainage of water by gravity to the nearest outlet in Mullassery canal to prevent flooding in KSRTC bus station and South railway station areas in the city.
The proposal was mooted by experts from the Irrigation Department who prepared an action plan for the 1.4-km-long canal that runs through the city.
The ₹10-crore canal restoration project was accorded administrative sanction the other day.
The team of experts led by R. Baji Chandran, superintending engineer, Irrigation Department, also suggested modifying the existing raised bed of the canal near the KSRTC bus station by effecting proper gradient towards the backwaters to avoid flooding.
An expert investigation had revealed that the entire stretch of the canal was covered by slabs. The initial 820-metre reach of the canal from the KSRTC bus station up to T.D. Road needs to be reconstructed. The bed level has to be lowered at least to that of the nearby Perandoor canal to ensure unobstructed flow of water, according to a detailed project report prepared by the team.
The bed level of the Mullassery canal has to be lowered by an average of one metre and width retained at 3 metres. At present, the width of the waterbody ranges from 12 metres near the mouth of the backwaters to 3 metres in some areas, it was found.
In reaches where the canal has gone narrower, it has to be widened to accommodate discharge. The canal starts from Perandoor canal near A.L. Jacob railway overbridge and moves towards the west along Mullassery Canal Road. It cuts across Chittoor Road, M.G. Road, T.D. Road, Market Road, and Park Avenue Road to flow into the backwaters near Marine Drive. Most portions of the canal are covered by concrete slabs and are being used as roadway, parking space, and access to commercial establishments and residential complexes, experts reported in the action plan.
The nearly 600-metre stretch of the canal near its mouth at the backwaters is in open condition. Several shops have come up on top of the canal along A.K. Seshadri Road, it was reported.
