The city’s iconic Marina Beach and other beaches dotting the East Coast are set to reopen on Monday, having been closed since the last week of March when the COVID-19 lockdown was announced.
The police and the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) have put in place measures to ensure the COVID-19 safety protocol is followed.
At 3 p.m. on March 21, all beaches in the city, including the Marina, Thiruvanmiyur, Palavakkam and Elliot’s Beach, were shut by the GCC, which said entry would be stopped until further orders. This decision was taken for public safety, as many people used to visit these beaches every day for fitness and leisure.
While all other restrictions were relaxed gradually, the bar on the entry to beaches was not lifted. Fitness enthusiasts often breached the restriction. On public demand, the government decided to reopen the beaches.
The GCC will resume the initiatives for maintenance of the Marina and other beaches on Monday. Civic officials said they would increase the number of workers and machines for improving garbage clearance.
The civic body is planning to take steps to reduce the number of vendors on Marina beach to 900, based on a court order, said an official. Before the lockdown was announced, the civic body had identified 1,700 hawkers on the beach. The number is expected to come down because many hawkers had migrated during the pandemic, officials said. During the lockdown, just one machine was used to clean the sands of the Marina. The number is expected to increase to six. The civic body had announced the procurement of six machines before the pandemic.
The number of visitors to beaches in Chennai is estimated at one lakh a day. Fewer visitors are expected on Monday owing to the pandemic, officials said. During the festival season, garbage collection was more than 25 tonnes on Chennai’s beaches. The work on the development of a parking management system will resume along the Marina.
A senior police officer said, “We are bringing the beach back to normal. In the morning and evening hours, mounted police will patrol the Marina. Gypsy patrol vehicles will be stationed at important junctions — Vivekananda House, Kannagi Statue, the Lighthouse and Labour Statue. Personnel on beach buggies will be deployed on the sands.”
The police are planning to conduct awareness campaigns using the public address system and other modes.
