A stormwater drain under construction (EPS)
CHENNAI: The Chennai Corporation has floated tenders for a Rs 120 crore World Bank-funded project to restore dilapidated stormwater drains (SWDs) in the city and also create link drains wherever necessary. The project will focus on the core areas of the city such as Royapuram, Anna Nagar, Adyar, Kodambakkam, and Teynampet.
“We have identified 144 routes of SWDs in 43 locations where water stagnation is happening. This project will address the issue by restoring the dilapidated drains either by replacing them or widening them,” officials with the SWD department told TNIE.
This is also part of the civic body’s Integrated Storm Water Drain (ISWD) project. “The desilting works resumed two months ago and most of the drains have been cleaned. These 144 routes alone need extended maintenance. Chennai will see no water stagnation by next year,” the official said.
While a majority of the SWDs only had issues of blockages due to silt and garbage, some of the drains needed to be widened as per current requirements. Officials said the ISWD project sponsored by the Asian Development Bank in Kosasthalaiyar Basin is going on in full swing with tenders being floated for SWD network in Puzhal catchment area in October.
In the ISWD network, about 7,306 micro-catchments have been identified and the total length of the SWD project would be 127 km. The SWD networks in this stretch would be connected to major water bodies in northern Chennai such as the Retteri lake, Otteri Nallah, Ambattur lake, Puzhal north and south surplus, Korattur lake and captain cotton canal, said officials.
With major SWD projects not taking shape due to the pandemic for the last one-and-a-half years, officials expect the majority of ISWD projects to be completed by 2022 and some in 2023, making the city water-stagnation free.
City corpn asks engineers to identify and fill potholes
Chennai: A day after 32-year-old Mohammad Younus was run over by a bus after his bike hit a pothole, the city corporation has ordered all potholes to be filled. While work had already started on Tuesday morning to fill potholes, a formal meeting was held in the evening with engineers from all zones. “We have asked engineers to identify and fill potholes. We have told them additional funds may be allotted if needed,” said an official. The techie lost control of his bike and was run over by an MTC bus. Although it occurred on a road maintained by the State Highways department, the corporation for its part has also initiated action to ensure no other such accidents occur in the city.
