CHENNAI: Days after the emergency oil spill cleanup was completed in Ennore creek, TNIE has learnt that houses in Nedunchezian Nagar in Tondiarpet too may have been affected by a leak. During a visit to the locality on Saturday, TNIE saw oil stains on the walls on several houses much like the stains seen in the fishing villages in Ennore. The residents said that the stains emerged after the flood, caused by Cyclone Michaung, receded in the area. Around 900 families reside in 10 streets of Nedunchezhian Nagar.
According to Panjamirutham S, a resident in the locality, the families have been trying to scrub the oil stains off the walls but they seem to have settled in and cannot be removed easily. During TNIE’s visit, water oozing out of some construction sites and trenches was dark in colour and appeared to be contaminated with oil. M Jayanthi, chairperson of the Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board told TNIE the board was not aware that oil traces had been seen in Tondiarpet area and assured that it will look into the issue as soon as possible.
However, residents claimed that this is not a new problem and suspect the nearby "oil depot" could be to blame. TNIE attempted to contact the company for comment but in vain. Residents said they have been complaining for years that the groundwater water in the locality has been contaminated with crude oil.
“If you just dig for two feet, you can easily spot crude oil traces. This has rendered borewell water unusable,” said Rajasekaran K, a resident. Maliga R, another resident, said right before the rains, when Greater Chennai Corporation workers started to work on storm water drains, oil was seen flowing on the ground. “They had to remove it using turpentine,” she recalled.
“We use groundwater only used to wash clothes. It was only six months back that we started getting clean metro water, without the smell of oil,” added the resident. In the neighbouring Vinobha Nagar and Rajiv Gandhi Nagar, slight traces of oil were seen, claimed residents. They alleged that despite multiple complaints, officials did not look into the matter.