CHENNAI: Even as the monsoon season is in the offing, waterbody restoration has gained pace in Chennai. The city corporation and the Public Works Department have begun restoring major waterbodies in the city and they expect to complete desilting and bund formation by November.
Out of the 210 water bodies identified last year, corporation officials said, close to 160, including lakes and ponds, have already been restored. “Desilting and removal of encroachments in the remaining are underway,’’ said an official.
On Tuesday, corporation officials along with North Chennai Lok Sabha MP Kalanidhi Veerasami visited Sathangadu Eri near Manali New Town and inspected the restoration plan. Officials said that the 77-acre lake was almost reduced to 10 acres due to encroachments. A few days ago, encroachers at the Alapakkam Lake near Maduravoyal were removed too.
Apart from the lakes, the corporation is also set to restore ponds and tanks in the city. Officials said that mini amphibians and telehandlers were deployed for desilting about 10 ponds. Therowpathi Amman Tank in Zone 13 and Ganapathy Nagar Pond in Zone 7 are among the major ponds being restored in the city.
An official said that the zone-level teams in all 15 corporation zones were instructed to monitor waterbodies and ensure that the work is completed before monsoon.
Meanwhile, PWD officials said, restoration works were also underway in some of the major waterbodies like the Chitlapakkam Eri. “More than 50 per cent works have been completed. We have also started forming bunds,’’ the official said, adding that landfill removal was on progress too. Officials said that restoration would commence at Sembakkam, Medavakkam and Thiruneermalai lakes too, shortly, even as the third phase of Adyar River eco-restoration is in progress.