The patience of road users is wearing thin as the work on widening the stormwater drain (SWD) on a 100-feet stretch of Gangadharan Street in Vadapalani is hanging fire. The Greater Chennai Corporation started the work at Gangadharan Street in March this year, and a major part of the work is complete. But the work on a part of Gangadharan Street where it intersects with Senthil Andavar Street and Dharan Singh Colony Road is still pending.
A six-feet-deep trench has been dug to widen the drain. This trench has not been fenced, and there isn’t even a warning board to warn road users of its presence.
“Gangadharan Street witnesses heavy traffic as it connects Chinmaya Nagar and Arcot Road. And there are no safety measures in place around the trench to prevent people from falling into it. Children frequent this road as there many schools are found in the vicinity,” says S. Krishnaveni, a resident of Vadapalani.
Residents want the Corporation to expedite the work and complete it at the earliest. Corporation officials cite seepage of sewage into the trench as the reason for delay in completion of the SWD work.
Following the recent spells of rain, the trench is filled with sewage and rainwater. “Appropriate safety features will be provided around the trench and the work will be completed at the earliest,” says a Corporation official.
