CHENNAI: Thiruneermalai has always been in the news for rampant garbage dumping in the area. But by regulating the waste collection and cleaning up the lake, residents and activists have ensured that the locality remains clean. Now, though the day-to-day garbage collection is swift and regular, piles of garbage mainly bio-waste is dumped in abandoned buildings and open lands all over the area.
Social welfare groups in the locality strive hard for a “Clean Thiruneermalai”. But, residents, who are mostly IT professionals, remain indifferent. “Most residents do not leave garbage to be picked up by conservancy workers. They find it easy to swing the garbage from their vehicles when they drop their children at school or go to work,” said V Pugalventhan of Thiruneermalai Nanbar Kuzhu, a social welfare group.
When Express visited Kumarasamy Street, Ranganathasamy Street and Sangam Street in Thiruneermalai, there were massive amounts of bio-waste dumped in open lands and neglected buildings. “We request residents to join us at Thiruneermalai lake every week so that we can create an overall awareness and not just about cleaning the lake,” said Pugalventhan, who has been instrumental in cleaning the lake with a group of residents.
Choked drains
In Thiruneermalai, many localities still have open drains. As a result, garbage dumped in the open lands moves through the water and ultimately chokes the canal connecting to Adyar River. Silambarasan, another member of the social welfare group, said that the stormwater drains from Lakshmipuram area and Ambedkar Nagar in Thiruneermalai were diverted from the lake to the canal. “A wall was built a couple of years ago to prevent sewage from entering the lake. As a result, the sewage along with huge amounts of plastic and bio-waste has now entered the canal in Lakshmipuram,” he said.
Express found excessive waste in the canal and it looked like a garbage-bed. “The Municipal Corporation does its best in keeping the streets clean but the ‘educated’ residents should realise that they should not be dumping the waste there,” he said.
Thiruneermalai town panchayat officials said about 10 conservancy workers collect garbage every day. “The panchayat cannot take responsibility when residents dump garbage intentionally in isolated buildings and open lands. Welfare groups, residents and panchayat will have to make this a clean place,” said the official.
Stinking spots
When Express visited Kumarasamy Street, Ranganathasamy Street and Sangam Street in Thiruneermalai, there were massive amounts of bio-waste dumped in open lands and neglected buildings.