Two weeks on, Chinnasekkadu residents knee-deep in sewage

Officials work day & night to drain out water but more comes in from other areas
A woman wades through sewage-mixed floodwater on the Mahatma Gandhi Cross Street, Chinnasekkadu in Chennai on Tuesday. The situation has been the same since Deepavali | P Jawahar
A woman wades through sewage-mixed floodwater on the Mahatma Gandhi Cross Street, Chinnasekkadu in Chennai on Tuesday. The situation has been the same since Deepavali | P Jawahar

CHENNAI: Over 100 families residing in the interior lanes of Chinnasekkadu in Madhavaram zone of the Chennai Corporation are knee-deep in water mixed with sewage for over two weeks now. Since the area does not have underground drainage system, there are several illegal sewage connections to the stormwater drains. So, when it floods, water almost always get mixed with sewage, say residents.

With water showing no sign of draining even after weeks, residents of Mahatma Gandhi Street have rental houses nearby so that the children do not miss school and also to prevent them from falling sick. Babu D, a resident for 42 years, said, “This is a developing locality. With more and more new buildings coming up, the issue of waterlogging has worsened over the years. People here are from middle class families and for them to decide to leave behind their houses shows how pervasive the issue is.”

Many of these streets like Raji and Devarajan streets have schools and it has been a struggle for children to get to classes. “Their shoes get soaked and they sit with sewage soaked feet. Everyday life has become more of a challenge,” said Usha P, another resident.

Corporation officials said that they have been at work night and day trying to drain out water from the streets but with this area being the passage for water from neighbouring areas like Velu street and Kannapiran street, water keeps coming in.

So far, eight of the waterlogged streets in the zone have been drained but 61 still remain. The disposal point for water from these areas is ultimately the Buckingham canal via stormwater drains passing through Futura layout. “We are trying our best to drain out water and are continuously at work. At this rate, the water will drain out by two or three days,” said an official.

Related Stories

No stories found.
The New Indian Express
www.newindianexpress.com