CHENNAI: To deal with the huge water crisis on the Old Mahabalipuram Road (OMR) stretch, Nasscom, the apex trade association of IT sector, on Wednesday convened a meeting with administrative managers from 40 firms.
It was decided to reach out to all stakeholders involved who can address the issue at the earliest, but that effort seems to have hit a road block. Requesting anonymity, a senior official from a IT company said, “When we contacted a higher political leader, he too washed his hands of it. He said he would not support us.”
The impact is equally felt by residential communities, some of whom are even contemplating leaving their houses. Riaz Ahamed, Secretary of TVH Svasti Resident Welfare Association (Thoraipakkam) said, there has been no water since Wednesday morning.
Their daily supply of five lorries, each containing 24,000 litres has been stopped. “All our reserve sources, including overhead tanks and underground sumps, are dry. This has severely crippled life, with as much as 15 per cent of the residents already moving out temporarily,” he said. Ahamed added that they are in touch with residents of other nearby apartments, with a plan to stage a protest out on the roads if no solution is arrived at.
When contacted, N Njialingam, President of South Chennai Private Tanker Lorry Owners’ Association, said the strike will continue till the authorities agree to their demands.
“We want the tankers to be released, besides being granted the permission to extract water from agricultural fields. We have agreements with farmers for taking groundwater for which we also pay,” he said, adding that a meeting with authorities has been scheduled for late Wednesday evening.
OMR, the IT corridor of the city, is home to more than 500 technological companies contributing to much of the State’s total software exports. Besides IT companies, there are countless residential communities, educational institutions and commercial establishments that all have been impacted.
Already, a few villages in and around the OMR stretch had obtained stay orders from the Madras High Court against extraction of ground water by private companies since it affects water supply to the villagers and for farming.