COIMBATORE: The Coimbatore City Municipal Corporation (CCMC) on Tuesday started work to place a pre-cast culvert near the railway underpass at Lanka corner to help quick draining of rainwater.
With 3 railway underpasses in the area, Lanka corner is one of the most affected places in the city whenever it rains. Even a short spell of rain leaves all three subways flooded up to the knee-level.
The CCMC drains water from the underpasses using motor pumps, pipelines and the stormwater channel. One of the 2 pipelines carrying the rainwater got damaged and draining works were delayed. In view of this, the CCMC decided to dig out the road near the railway underpass and construct a culvert using precast structure.
Speaking to TNIE, CCMC Commissioner M Sivaguru Prabakaran said, “Earlier, there were just two pipes to carry water from the subway to the Valankulam channel. It was time-consuming. So, we are now installing a large precast culvert to quickly drain out the water. Once installed, the water logging issues in the old 2 subways will be reduced drastically. The new railway underpass is a bit deep. So we are looking at other options for it.”
In view of the culvert works, traffic has been diverted for the next two days. Vehicles proceeding from Town Hall to the Coimbatore Railway junction, CMCH and the Tiruchy Road can travel on the old underpass just like before. However, vehicles proceeding from the CMCH and Tiruchy Road towards Town Hall will have to use the old railway underpass instead of the new one due to the culvert works.
A senior official from the engineering section of the CCMC told TNIE that earlier, two 300 mm pipelines were used to carry the stagnant water from the subway to the canal.
Now, a 5.5 x 5.5 ft precast culvert is to be installed for 11 metres connecting with the Valankulam canal. The work is being carried out at the cost of about `7 lakh.