Ambattur residents cry foul over deplorable state of Thangal lake

CHENNAI: Residents of Ambattur crying foul over the state of Thangal lake in the area. The lake is highly polluted and the residents complain that the sorry state of the lake was due to illegal sewage discharged from the adjoining residential areas in the locality.

Apart from the pollution, the condition has also led to the lake becoming a mosquito breeding zone. The civic body has not taken any steps to eradicate the menace caused by mosquitoes in the area. People have fallen sick, and many have been hospitalised for dengue and malaria in the recent past.

Though the civic body normally takes action against those who discharge sewage through Storm Water Drains (SWDs) in many parts of the city, nothing is being done by the authorities related to the illegal release of sewage into this lake through the drains. This has been a perennial problem in the locality.

“Several streets in Vijayalakshmi Puram, including Annie Besant street, Patel Nagar, Indira Gandhi Street, and KVK Shanthi Street do not have drainage connections. So, the untreated water is being discharged into the lake through the SWDs in the locality, “ said S Jayachandran, a resident of Ambattur.

“Whenever we pass beside the water body, the entire stretch stinks with highly polluted water,” he added.

Local residents are worried that sewage stagnation has become a never-ending issue in the locality, especially during the rainy season.

During rainy days, the entire street is stagnated with drainage water and people are forced to wade through the contaminated water. The road later becomes a mess after the drainage water is pumped out.

“The lake has become a mosquito breeding ground. People are infected with vector-borne diseases and are hospitalised for weeks. When we raise complaints to the concerned department and Ward Councillor, nobody seems to be bothered to protect the waterbody and come up with a permanent solution to end the woes of the residents in the locality,” said V Ganeshwar, another resident of Ambattur.

When contacted, Zonal Corporation officials did not respond to the calls despite multiple attempts by DT Next.