The Kakkalur Industrial Estate at Tiruvallur, one of the oldest in Tamil Nadu, is beset with infrastructure issues.
The main problem is an open canal flowing through the estate. It was meant to transport excess water from the Putlur lake to the Thanneerkulam lake. But the water overflowing from the Tiruvallur sewage treatment plant is diverted through it. As the water does not flow through, it gets stagnated.
“When it rains, the sewage gets mixed with the rainwater. The contaminated water is being blocked by the locals from running into the Thanneerkulam lake. This causes flooding of units near the outlet,” said K. Baskaran, secretary of the Kakkalur Industrial Estate Manufacturers Association (KIEMA).
This has been the situation for the past few years. On a few occasions, equipment has been damaged and production has been lost. “Failure to address this issue immediately will lead to the closure of 30-40 units this rainy season,” he said.
The industrial estate has around 522 micro, small and medium units, of which 234 are operating. “Some units have closed temporarily after the outbreak of COVID-19, while some others have wound up business. The rest have moved to other locations,” Mr. Baskaran said.
Garbage dumping is another long-standing problem. All the garbage from the Kakkalur panchayat is being dumped on the SIDCO premises and burnt. The electricity transmission lines (33 KVA and 110 KVA) to the Kakkalur sub-station are criss-crossing the area where garbage is burnt. The smoke could damage these high-voltage lines.
A letter from KIEMA president N. Subramanian pointed out that representations had been made to the branch manager, SIDCO, Kakkalur, but the issue is yet to be resolved.
The main access roads to the estate are also in bad shape. And proper lighting is needed at all the important junctions.
The KIEMA office-bearers and those operating out of this estate have requested the government to look into these issues immediately.
