CHENNAI: With civic body officials engaged in election-related engagements for the past few weeks, residents of Tambaram Corporation, including Perungalathur and Pallavaram, have raised serious concerns over the poor maintenance of stormwater drains, claiming that civic works have been neglected.
They said that many stormwater drains in residential areas remain clogged with garbage, silt and stagnant sewage water, causing severe inconvenience to the public. In several localities, overflowing drainage water has entered homes during recent rains and the resulting water stagnation. This forced residents to spend from their pockets to temporarily clear blockages and repair the drains.
Perungalathur resident Johnson noted that the routine desilting and cleaning works by the corporation have not properly taken place in recent months. The situation has worsened, particularly in interior roads and low-lying areas, where drainage water remains stagnant for days, emitting foul smell and increasing mosquito menace.
Residents fear that if immediate action is not taken, the situation could worsen with large-scale flooding inside houses. "During every rain, the clogged drains overflow into the streets and even enter our homes. We are forced to spend money to clear the drains because nobody from the corporation is coming for maintenance work," said a Tambaram resident.
The residents have urged the Tambaram Corporation to immediately undertake large-scale cleaning and desilting operations across affected areas and restore regular maintenance works soon.
Official sources from the Tambaram Corporation explained that the works could not be done as they were engaged in poll work, but the desilting work has begun, and the issue will be resolved soon.