Ennore region faces new flood threat

Several roads laid to erect transmission towers eat into Kosasthalaiyar backwaters
One of the roads laid encroaching the backwaters | DEBADATTA MALLICK
One of the roads laid encroaching the backwaters | DEBADATTA MALLICK

CHENNAI: Even as monsoon preparedness efforts are underway in full swing, there are multiple abandoned roads criss-crossing the Kosasthalaiyar river backwaters in Ennore Creek that have triggered flood scare among north Chennai residents. These roads were laid by Tamil Nadu Transmission Corporation Limited (TANTRANSCO) for erecting transmission towers for 400 KV and 765 KV power evacuation lines.  

As per official documents, TANTRANSCO has been building 124 transmission towers, of which 71 fall in Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) area. It had obtained CRZ clearance from the Union Environment Ministry on November 1, 2019. While granting clearance, the ministry had imposed a list of specific conditions and one of them says, “any physical infrastructure set up during construction period shall be removed simultaneously with completion of laying of each segment of the erection project.”

TANTRANSCO has finished work on around 30 transmission towers for which several temporary roads had been laid and construction debris dumped inside the waterbody. It’s been months since these tower works were completed, but the place has not been restored to its original shape.  TNIE visited the area on Friday and it was evident that TANTRANSCO failed to remove the concrete debris roads that were laid blocking water flow in various parts of the backwaters, including across the Kuruvimedi and Buckingham canals. 

Save Ennore Campaign, a voluntary group working for protection of Ennore wetlands, had made an independent assessment of the extent of area lost due to these roads using satellite imagery. The campaign claims more than 39 acres of wetlands, including 16.6 acres of areas identified as mangroves and mangrove buffers in the approved Coastal Zone Management Plan, have been encroached upon.  

RL Srinivasan, a fisherman from Kattukuppam, said: “We have been protesting against this illegality and petitioned all the authorities concerned, but so far no action has been taken. “If monsoon rains are heavy, north Chennai, Manali, Madhavaram, Ponneri and Gummidipoondi would all face trouble.”    

Pooja Kumar from Coastal Resource Centre told TNIE that in December 2015, areas like Kuruvimedu, Athipattu, Athipattu Pudunagar, Ernavur, Manali New Town etc., were badly affected by floodwaters that did not recede as expected. “The drastic reduction in the wetland area and the depth of what has been left has reduced the creek’s ability to evacuate floodwaters from Kosasthalaiyar, Puzhal surplus canal, Buckingham Canal and the Araniyar.”

Similarly, in December 2016, Cyclone Vardah had made landfall in Pulicat in the Ennore region. The resultant storm surge of more than 1 metre above the astronomic tide had reportedly inundated low-lying areas in the region. Normally, the creek is the first shock absorber to deter the storm surge. But with its water-carrying capacity vastly reduced, the creek’s ability to absorb storm shocks has also declined. 

When contacted, TANTRANSCO director S Shanmugam claimed construction work on transmission towers stopped due to protests from locals. “The roads that were laid as right of way do not obstruct the flow of water. Anyway, I will ask the local engineers to look into the issue and restore the area surrounding the towers that have been constructed.”State Disaster Management Authority (SDMA) director D Subbaiyan could not be contacted for comments. 

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