CHENNAI: With the Hindu Religious and Charitable Endowments (HR & CE) Department failing to reclaim its three-acre plot at the Selaiyur-Chitlapakkam border, youth from the area have taken it upon themselves to clean the plot that was filled with trash and sewage.
The youth from Thiruvalluvar Nagar have fenced the plot to prevent further dumping of domestic waste and removed existing waste using JCBs. “We were tired of asking the temple administration and Tambaram municipality to clean the trash and so we decided to do it ourselves,” said K Jeevanandam, a youth who contributed money for the clean-up.The youth have also begun construction of a badminton court and a cricket pitch on the land.
“If the HR & CE Department wants to utilise the land eventually, we won’t protest,” said a temple priest, who claimed to have organised sponsorship for building the badminton court. “We were afraid this plot would become just like the Chitlapakkam dump yard,” he said.
It was reported in February that the HR & CE Department is turning a blind eye to the Tambaram municipality draining a portion of its sewage into the three-acre plot. While the residents of Thiruvalluvar Nagar have managed to restrict the sewage to the extreme portions of the plot by constructing mud bunds, sewage continues to reach the backyards of houses in Chitlapakkam via the HR & CE’s plot.
After the monsoon last year, top officials visited the spot and assured to put in place a proper channel for the surplus water from the Selaiyur lake, which runs off into the plot mixed with sewage. Locals said only temporary measures have been taken.