A year after the completion of the first phase of the Operation Anantha flood mitigation drive, the second phase is nowhere in sight, even as the gains of the first phase are being reversed by large-scale waste dumping in the widened drains.
When the first phase was declared complete in February last year, it was said that the second phase will have to be begun soon to ensure a lasting solution to the flooding in the Thampanoor area.
However, now some of the major drains leading to Thampanoor, that were widened during the operation, can be seen filled with mounds of plastic and other waste, preventing the flow.
Legal issues
The state of the drains is of even more concern because the widening work was completed by demolishing buildings belonging to common people, after the clamping down of the Disaster Management Act 2005.
This was despite the drive stopped short of demolishing some big structures, including a bar hotel, due to legal issues.
Proposal with govt.
According to District Collector S. Venkatesapathy, the proposal for the second phase of Operation Anantha is now pending with the State government.
“The second phase should have taken off early, but it is pending for want of funds and other things. We need to get the government’s approval for the works to be taken up and funds to be handed over. In addition to the earlier proposals, we had submitted additional ones two months ago. I am not sure whether it will start before the next monsoon,” said the Collector.
He said that urgent works were completed in the first phase itself, which had ensured some level of flow in the canals till Thampanoor. But, the works have to be continued for it to be effective.
Rainwater pits
A pond at Putharikandam and a water reservoir or rainwater harvesting pit or similar initiative at Ponnara Park were among proposals that were being considered in the first phase.
The work on the S.S. Kovil Road, which was included in the first phase of the operation and for which Rs.3.9 crore was allocated, could not take off, as the attempts to convert a part of the Manjalikkulam ground into a rainwater pond failed.
These works were said to be the key elements to ensure a flood-free Thampanoor.
Now, neither are these taking off, but whatever has been completed is also being slowly lost.
