Temple tank revamp to meet water needs of West Mambalam

At a time when the whole city is reeling under the stress of an impending water shortage, an initiative by a young team of volunteers offers some respite. 

The tank which served as a water source for West Mambalam and later suffered neglect is close to gaining its lost glory. Suresh N, organiser of Young Patriots who joined hands with eight NGOs to restore the water source, said that they had been campaigning in South Chennai, especially at various parks, to create awareness on rainwater harvesting. The group went on to survey the tank more than six months ago to study its potential for the project.

“The tank is as big as the one in Kapaleeswarar Temple and was being cleaned only sporadically. We got together and cleared it of its extra growth and wilderness, apart from creating three inlets for the water to reach the tank.” While two inlets are open, there is some resistance from residents against opening the third inlet, as they fear it could flood their streets,” he said.

After combined efforts, the next task was to ensure there was no overgrowth of water hyacinth as that would defeat the whole purpose. “Now, there is more than a foot of water and if we have more rains, the tank will be half full. We can look at meeting the needs of the local residents,” he added.

However, Suresh said that the stumbling block is lack of will among residents. “There is open defecation in the area and the e-toilet in the area is not being utilised properly. We are working towards ensuring that the toilet serves the purpose to reduce the problem of open defecation,” he said. The volunteers have also been increasing the greenery around with a sapling drive and regular watering of plants.