CHENNAI: As the assembly election approaches, resident welfare associations (RWAs) across Chennai, are converging, and flagging a familiar set of civic failures including flooding, congestion, encroachments and weak enforcement – cutting across neighbourhoods that otherwise have little in common.
From the IT corridor to North Chennai, and Anna Nagar to T Nagar, drainage failures and water management remain among the most consistent concerns.
In Velachery, residents have called for widening of storm water channels and restoration of natural outflows to address repeated inundation. “Encroachment around Velachery lake should be removed, and a bund should be constructed on the south side to resolve the flooding,” said Geetha Ganesh, secretary of AGS Colony RWA (Velachery West).
In Tambaram, the Chitlapakkam Rising Group (CRG) has pushed for lake restoration under a structured ‘deflect, drain, desilt and deepen’ approach, along with expansion of underground sewerage to prevent contamination. The problem cuts across geographies.
In Ambattur, United Welfare Associations flagged sewage mixing with storm water drains, missing drainage networks and stagnation in several localities. In North Chennai, the Federation of North Chennai Residents Welfare Association (FNCRWA) has called for large-scale restoration of canals, removal of encroachments along waterways and stricter control of industrial discharge.
Even in planned neighbourhoods like Anna Nagar, Federation of Anna Nagar Residents’ Associations (FOARA) has sought extension of diversion channels and implementation of long-pending balancing canal projects.
Traffic stress is no longer limited to commercial hubs. In T Nagar and Anna Nagar, RWAs lament the consistent usage of residential streets by commercial establishments for parking their vehicles, restricting movement and affecting safety. FOARA has proposed multi-level parking facilities at key transit points, while T Nagar residents have demanded that service lanes along Usman Road be made usable and encroachments cleared.
In Ambattur, residents flagged traffic chaos due to container lorries, lack of functioning signals and poor junction management. In Perambur and Vyasarpadi, the Perambur Neighbourhood Development Forum (PNDF) pointed to streets choked by illegal parking and absence of pedestrian infrastructure.
Encroachments both by vendors and commercial establishments feature prominently across the charters presented. In T Nagar, residents have sought removal of encroachments along Usman Road and Ranganathan Street.
Similar concerns were raised in Anna Nagar over commercial spillover into residential streets. In Besant Nagar, civic forum SPARK (SPARK) has called for retrieval of public spaces, removal of encroachments along waterways and action against coastal regulation violations, particularly around Elliot’s Beach.
Several RWAs pointed to ageing infrastructure that has not kept pace with densification. In Tambaram, residents have demanded a 150 MLD water treatment plant along with a full-scale underground sewerage network to address contamination and supply gaps.
In Anna Nagar, sewer lines laid decades ago were cited as inadequate for current multi-storey development. Tambaram and OMR-based associations have similarly called for expansion of sewerage networks and new treatment capacity. Along the IT corridor, the Federation of OMR Resident Associations (FOMRRA) has flagged a mismatch between rapid urbanisation and basic civic systems, pointing to gaps in sewerage, drainage and waste management in some of the city’s fastest-growing neighbourhoods.
Electricity infrastructure has also been flagged, with demands for upgraded distribution systems and safer cabling.
The Alliance of Resident Welfare Associations (AoRWA) and other federations have called for public disclosure of project details, time-bound execution and unified grievance redressal systems. In Perambur, PNDF has sought ward-level citizen committees and quarterly public review meetings to monitor civic works. Similar demands for inclusion of RWAs in planning processes have been raised in Ambattur and Anna Nagar.
Several groups also flagged lack of coordination between agencies, leading to repeated digging of roads, incomplete works and delays in project execution.