Sholinganallur residents want the Greater Chennai Corporation to stop the dumping of garbage. The Pallikaranai Marsh, which once stretched 2,000 acres, has been reduced to less than 100 acres, with the development of commercial and residential property and a portion set aside for the dump. The Perungudi dump is one of the biggest and it is located in a designated marsh, which was meant to safeguard residents from floods by acting as a buffer. Adding to the problem is the health hazard the dump poses by the pollution it creates and the leaching of the inorganic materials destroying the water table in the marsh. Sholinganallur has a population of more than 20 lakh, with the presence of the Information Technology Corridor. But the dump poses hardships to the residents. The residents welfare association demands that the civic body shut down the dump and restore the marsh at the earliest.
D. Raman, president, Confederation of Sholinganallur Residents Welfare Association.
Corporation responds:
A senior official of the Chennai Corporation says an ecopark has been planned to replace the Perungudi dump. The proposal has been prepared and forwarded. Also bio-mining in the dump has begun to cover more than 1,000 tonnes of waste.
Cattle cause hardships
Cattle roam Mudichur High Road in large numbers, holding up traffic and posing a threat to pedestrians. Mudichur Main Road is an arterial road. It links the GST Road to the Kancheepuram Highway. The road has become busy with heavy traffic and the presence of residential localities. Recently, an elderly man was killed at Nanganallur after being gored by a buffalo.
R. Prabhakar Babu, Mudichur.
(Readers can write to this column at readersmailchennai @thehindu.co.in)
