CHENNAI: With the two new weather systems forming in the Bay of Bengal, boats have been kept ready in Velachery and Anna Nagar to evacuate people from low-lying areas in the event of flooding, with the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) deploying 36 boats and the Fisheries Department keeping another 97 boats on standby, GCC commissioner GS Sameeran said on Thursday.
Briefing reporters after inspecting a relief centre at the community hall in Pattinapakkam and a community kitchen at Padavattamman Koil Street in Royapuram, the commissioner said the civic body had made extensive arrangements to tackle the northeast monsoon, including preparing 227 relief centres and 112 community kitchens across its 15 zones.
The relief centres have been equipped with essential supplies, including mats, bedsheets and pillows, while the kitchens have stocked provisions to prepare food. The corporation has stored 12,399 kg of rice, 2,355 kg of dal, 1,590 litres of cooking oil and 696 kg of salt, with additional supplies to be procured if required.
The commissioner said the northeast monsoon could last around 90 days, posing several challenges and the civic body will utilise the experience of the first five days to work throughout the season. Between October 17 and 21, the corporation provided food to 56,100 people, he said.
Despite heavy rainfall on October 17 and 21, the city avoided major damage and inconvenience to the public, with water stagnation in more than 100 locations cleared using motor pumps. The civic body has deployed 220 tree-cutting machines to remove dangerous trees and branches, with over 78,000 branches cleared so far. Another 2,200 workers have been deployed for tree-clearing operations, he added.
To prevent health problems during the rainy season, 103 mobile medical teams are now operating daily, as against the earlier 40. More than 3,300 people have benefited from these services, he pointed out.
The corporation is also operating 57 night shelters for homeless people. As part of its efforts to protect vulnerable residents during the monsoon, 66 people living on pavements in 23 locations in the Periyar Nagar area have been accommodated in a temporary shelter, the commissioner said.
