Anna Nagar near Thennur, one of the prime residential localities in the heart of the city, has come to be characterised by squalor and unhygienic conditions due to massive and reeking open drains that criss-cross the area.
A complex network of open drains, most of them originating from Azhvarthoppu and other neighbouring areas along the Uyyakondan, runs across many streets in Anna Nagar. For several years, the corporation has been struggling to ensure a proper disposal system for these drains. During the monsoon season, rainwater, mixed with sewage water, flows into many low-lying households.
While this issue has been a perennial problem, a recent move by the Corporation to build open concrete drains on certain stretches around Bharathiar Street appears to have aggravated the problem. Over the past few days, the open drain at the entrance of Bharathiar Street has been overflowing frequently. A pile of garbage could be seen at steel grill placed before the sump on the drain at the spot. The clogged drain overflows and takes its own course to run alongside the road. Residents have to cross over the stream of sewage to enter the street. The sewage heads up to an adjacent open plot.
The corporation, with good intention, has built drains to prevent overflow of sewage. But the sewage in the drains does not flow.
Three large sumps of about six feet depth each have been constructed to hold the excess flow. There is a grave danger of children accidentally slipping into these sumps. The sumps are not drained out periodically either, says P.Natarajan, a resident of Bharathiar Street. “Apart from being mosquito breeding sources, the stench that emanates from the drains should be experienced to be believed,” he says.
Open drains on Kannadasan Street, Bharathidasan Street, Alavandar Nagar and other parts of Anna Nagar could be seen stagnating and overflowing.
While Anna Nagar is covered by the underground sewer network, slum dwellers residing along the Uyyakondan and at Azhvarthoppu are not and the entire sewage is let out into open drains.
Little has been done to overcome the problem posed by the stagnant and foul smelling open drains that pose a health hazard in the locality for years.
“Sewage from thousands of households flow across Anna Nagar and this has become a curse of the locality. The city is said to have been ranked second in cleanliness but given the conditions here it doesn’t deserve the ranking,” fumes T.M.Nazeer Ahamed, another resident of the locality.
When contacted, a corporation official said the drains were built to ensure proper flow of sewage. The sumps have been built to clear the silt accumulation periodically, he said and assured to rectify the problem of sewage overflow.
Sewage from thousands of households flows across Anna Nagar and this has become a curse of the locality
