COIMBATORE: Even as the northeast monsoon has become active, Coimbatore City Municipal Corporation (CCMC) commissioner Sivaguru Prabakaran directed officials to use pre-cast concrete structures and expedite construction of stormwater channel on Tiruchy road.
As per sources, the civic body has been constructing a stormwater channel at the cost of Rs 9 crore from the Valankulam water body at the Sungam junction to the Alvernia School on Tiruchy Road to prevent inundation of the roads in Sungam and Ramanathapuram areas by taking water from the water bodies to Sanganoor canal.
The channel will be 2.1 km in length, 1.2 metres wide, 2 metres deep and 13 metres slope. The channel will be constructed from the Valankulam in the Sungam Junction and will travel through Puliyakulam, Gandhi Nagar, Masala Layout, the Ammankulam and finally will be drained at the Sanganoor Canal on Tiruchy Road.
Speaking to TNIE, Prabakaran said the workers were instructed to use pre-cast structures for the project considering the time taken and the traffic congestion in the area, adding that the pre-cast structures cost around the same as conventional construction methods and those structures will not be used for the entire drain project.
“The pre-cast structures will be set up only at the important junctions and crossings. Currently, they are installed near the school on the Ramanathapuram junction, considering the safety of the school students. We have asked the police department to block the stretch of 200 m on Tiruchy Road to finish the work soon. If we can’t complete the work in two to three days, then we shall use pre-cast structures on the 200-m stretch,” he added.
A project official told TNIE that they have completed the construction works for 1,120 m out of the total 1,700 m and the remaining works would be finished in one month. “The pre-cast structures can only be used in a straight line as they have to ne interlocked. They are not suitable in places with curves and ups and downs. So, they are not used for the entire project,” added the official.