Sludge oozes out in Washermanpet due to Metro Rail work, creates panic

Residents and onlookers gathered around, as the strange sludge seeped onto the road, where Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL) authorities were building a tunnel 20 feet under the ground. The sludge wasn’t restricted to the narrow road along. Soon, the ground floor of the nearby houses was invaded by the bubbling sludge.

Sruthi Ravindran, Spokesperson for CMRL, said the leakage was due to the presence of a borewell. “There was a leakage at Washermanpet as the owner of the particular property had not informed us if there was a borewell on the premises. He didn’t allow us to inspect the site or clear the area earlier. During instrumentation and monitoring, this information was not conveyed by the owner to the CMRL. After this incident, he has allowed us to do so. We are now in the process of cleaning and investigating the site, to find out if there is an unidentified borewell. Post inspection, we will have more details,” she explained. 

The residents were alarmed at this and pointed out that there was a need to escalate the issue. One of the residents living on the first floor, on condition of anonymity, said, “The sludge was not there in the morning when the neighbour’s son was going to the gym. It suddenly occurred and in no time, had entered the houses.” 

This incident comes less than two weeks after a cave-in at Anna Salai, where an MTC bus and car were stranded.