CHENNAI: Residents of Old Washermenpet urged the Chennai Metropolitan Water Supply and Sewerage Board (CMWSSB) to speed up the underground sewage pipeline replacement works that have been going on for over six months.
Commuters cannot travel by the road, which connects commercial hubs in the locality. They are forced to take a long route to reach the main road.
Sewage overflow and stagnation in the locality cause inconvenience to commuters and residents. Following multiple complaints, the CMWSSB began replacing the damaged sewage pipeline at the stretch of Singara Garden Street in Old Washermenpet and Somu Chetty Street at Royapuram which connects GA Road and MS Koil Street, respectively.
“When the department started the work, it was a relief for the residents as they thought the overflowing sewage would stop from the residential buildings. However, the snail pace of work led to disappointment to the residents, pedestrians and motorists, especially school children detoured every day to reach their respective schools,” said R Ramesh, a resident of Old Washermenpet.
After work progressing at a snail’s pace, replacement work has now been stalled in the area for a long time, it turned into a dumping ground for garbage and debris.
The poor solid waste management and unhygienic conditions prevailed throughout the stretches. Despite being one of the roads connecting Royapuram and Old Washermenpet, the local body has failed to speed up the pending work.
“With the onset of northeast monsoon likely in the next two months, there will be sewage overflow again. When reached out to the assistant engineer of the metro water board they gave a lethargic response that since it is a pipeline linked during the British period, it might take a while to complete the work. We urge the department concerned to replace the pipe within a month to prevent sewage stagnation on the streets,” said T Marimuthu, another resident.
The officials from CMWSSB did not respond to the calls by DT Next.