Repair work began on Tuesday at the four-storeyed residential apartment complex that developed cracks three days ago due to Chennai Metro Rail work.
“We have started the repair work and it will go on for another week. We have started with plastering work,” said an official of Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL).
On Friday, many houses in the STS Complex located on Anna Pillai Street in Broadway sported cracks formed due to underground tunnelling work on the Mannady-Madras High Court stretch.
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The building with 22 apartments, which was constructed in 1999, developed at least five minor cracks, each about 2-3 mm wide, and a bigger crack, about 6-8 mm wide. One of the cracks had widened, CMRL officials had pointed out.
Forty-two-year-old M.H. Rasheeda, whose house was among those damaged, said the repair work had disrupted Bakrid celebrations. “There was hardly any celebration this time as I had to prepare the house for repair. We follow another calendar and observed Bakrid two days ago. The officials have promised to repair and re-paint the house within a week,” she said.
Some commercial establishments including a nationalised bank are also located in the complex. Sources said some of the shops suffered cracks and some glass windows too were broken.
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Early in July, two heritage structures, CSI Tamil Wesley Church and Arcot Lutheran Church, developed cracks due to underground tunnelling work on the same stretch.
While the Arcot Lutheran Church has been repaired, some more work remains to be carried out at CSI Tamil Wesley Church.