Sea water damages houses at Ennore, Pattinapakkam

Srinivasan Rajesh, a fisherman from Ennore, said that more than 20 houses have been damaged in Chinna Kuppam, Periya Kuppam and parts of Ernavur. “The water has entered homes in this area. Earlier, this never used to happen as the sand dunes protected the villages from the sea. But now, due to the erection of groynes and construction activity on the coast - including the Port and shipbuilding yards in the locality, the water is coming into our homes. This has been happening regularly over the last few years now,” he said. 

In Srinivasapuram, a fishing hamlet in Pattinapakkam, near the Marina beach, some homes have been destroyed. Raja, a 33-year-old was distraught over the loss of his house. “I haven’t slept for the last three days, worrying if the tide will affect our home. Today, two other homes were washed away and water entered our house too. My wife and three children are currently in their grandparents’ home - we don’t have a place to stay. We depend on the sea for our living but due to rough seas, we cannot go out for fishing. Now, our houses are lost too. We don’t know what to do,” said the fisherman.

Environmentalist Nityanand Jayaraman said that the phenomenon of the sea trying to enter the land is common. However, he pointed out that in places like Srinivasapuram, it is the people who are moving closer to the sea. “On the other hand, in Ennore, the sea has come closer. This is the season when the sea is rough and wants to enter the land, which occurs through the river mouth. But in this case, the entry to the river mouth has been denied due to encroachments. So, instead of entering through the river mouth, it is also moving in through the sea side. The government is trying to drown people, by not caring about these areas. The public will be caught between water from the rain and the sea. Instead of celebrating the rains, we will be rueing it,” he concluded.