Chennai: Storm Water Drain (SWD) construction works are on at mixed pace in the neighbourhood. With more and more areas being covered to ensure that Ambattur is ready to face rains when they come, motorists and pedestrians are however a worried lot.
For them, open SWDs in several parts of the locality and its neighbouring areas is a threat. Open drains, especially at CTH Road is something residents dread seeing nowadays.
Nagaraj, a commuter said, “I use this stretch every day like thousands do. We do not want open drains at the side of the road. It is dangerous and the area is not that well lit, so it would prove harmful even for pedestrians during night. This must be sorted out.”
What worries residents more is the delay in the completion of the underground drainage system (UGD) project in the neighbourhood. “It has been more than a decade since the project started. But it has not progressed as much as the SWDs. This means residents let sewage into SWDs, without much thought. They do not care about the SWDs taking water to lakes in the neighbourhood and that they will get polluted. It is a sad state really,” said Poongodi, a flower seller at CTH Road.
With the SWDs being at least three feet deep and with them having no slabs to cover, residents also state that they are being used as garbage pits in many areas. “Sewage water is being let into it and people throw garbage into SWDS as well. This is not a nice sight to look at. Authorities need to clear the garbage from the drains and work towards preparing them for the upcoming monsoon,” said Dharani, a student.
Residents want authorities to cover the drains with lids first and then work on stopping sewage being let into such drains. “Ambattur is a developing neighbourhood with new residential areas coming up pretty much every day. Officials should work on providing all necessary amenities to such residences to avoid problems. Many areas do not have sewage connections and there are disputes regarding that, for house owners are asked to bare the brunt of sewage connection costs when in fact it must be the work of the builder who constructed the apartments. With issues such as these yet to be resolved, SWDs will be used as sewage drains and their purpose will go in vain. Action must be taken soon,” said Ganapathy, a resident of Ambattur.