It would only be reasonable to expect the newly-constructed culverts and the desilted stormwater drain on the Pulzhal section of Surapet Main Road to at their optimal best in a rain, especially of the kind witnessed in Chennai now. For, this improvement work is said to have been carried out only a year and a half ago.
However, the overnight shower on July 24 had motorists and pedestrians wading through water the following morning.
The State Highways Department, which maintains Surapet Main Road, constructed four culverts as part of its efforts to prevent flooding during monsoon. It took nearly six months for the stormwater drain (towards Puzhal) to be desilted — Chennai Metrowater executed the work.
The new culverts were constructed between the local Chennai Metrowater pumping station and a gas station on the stretch, a distance of around 800 metres. The 800-metre-stretch has a narrow bend with no street lights, median and reflectors. More importantly, this section of Surapet Main Road is a low-lying area making it prone to inundation, even after a gentle downpour.
Earlier, during an inundation, motorists would find it difficult to differentiate between the low-lying carriageway and the narrow storm water drain as both would be completely submerged in the rainwater.
With thick vegetation found along the drain towards Puzhal, many motorists had slipped into the open drain with other road users coming to their rescue.
“The new culverts and desilting of the drain have not improved the condition of the stretch and the flow of excess rainwater. At night, we cannot see the open drain and the carriageway as both are covered with rainwater,” says K. Arumugam, a motorist from Puzhal.
Every day, many motorists from city outskirts, which include Red Hills, Padiyanallur, Puzhal, Annanoor, Thirumullavoyal and Avadi use Surapet MainRoad to reach the central parts of the city.
As Jawaharlal Nehru Main Road has become chaotic, especially during rush hour, due to the ongoing flyover work at Rettai Eri, motorists coming from the city’s western outskirts find it convenient to use Surapet Main Road to reach the city in a shorter time.
The overnight showers on July 24 have brought the decades-old water-logging problem back into focus. The clogging problem has resurfaced mainly due to poor maintenance of the new culverts and the stormwater drains. In fact, most of the bitumen on the newly-laid stretch at Surapet junction has washed away in recent rains.
“Steps will be taken soon to prevent water logging on the stretch,” says a State Highways official.
