It is a sea of green — and there is nothing to be proud about, here. A large part of the sprawling lake near Taramani railway station is covered in green. Water hyacinth ( Seemai Karuvelam) , thorny bushes and other dense vegetation are obstructing the natural course of the lake.
The lake has shrunk from 100 to 40 acres due to encroachments, dumping of garbage and construction debris, say residents. This would be evident to anyone walking along that stretch.
The waterbody is contaminated due to discharge of sewage and trash through stormwater drains in Taramani.
Once a lifeline for the residents of the neighbourhood, Taramani - Perungudi Eri is a picture of neglect.
The rainwater channel, which should carry excess rain water from Taramani to Perungudi is blocked due to dumping of construction debris. At Kallukuttai, encroachers are dumping debris and encroaching further into the lake area to construct houses. The lake comes under the jurisdiction of the Greater Chennai Corporation.
Residents of Taramani, Perungudi, Velachery and a non-governmental organisation working towards the restoration of the water bodies have requested the GCC to work closely with the Revenue Department to demarcate the boundaries of the lake. Around 5,000 houses have been constructed on the lake area at Kallukuttai. Seeni Seethuraman, co-ordinator, Madipakkam Neer Nilai Punaramaippu Iyakkam, says, “Steps should be taken at the earliest to clean the lake of trash, remove encroachments and de-silt and deepen the lake and form bunds to collect rain water.”
The restoration of the water body will help recharge the ground water level in South Chennai, he said.
