After south Chennai emerges clear of waterlogging, spotlight turns to bad roads

Chennai's southern parts clear of water stagnation after first monsoon rains, but some areas still facing waterlogging.

A day after the first spell of the northeast monsoon rains hit the city, most of Chennai’s southern parts which were flooded on Tuesday, were clear of water stagnation.

However, a few areas including Kamaraj Nagar in Thiruvanmiyur, Rajaji Nagar in Madipakkam and Sai Balaji Nagar in Pallikaranai continued to see waterlogging on Wednesday.

After the first round of showers, many parts of Rajiv Gandhi Salai, including Perungudi, Karapakkam, Thoraipakkam, Perumbakkam and Sholinganallur, parts of Madipakkam like Ram Nagar and Kuberan Nagar, Indira Nagar, Adyar and Thiruvanmiyur witnessed heavy flooding on Tuesday, but the water receded on Wednesday.

Residents of Madipakkam, OMR and Tambaram said since the city witnessed rains only on one day and there was time for water to get cleared, they escaped the flooding. K Karthik, a resident of Sholinganallur said, both Okkiyum Maduvu and the marshland near ELCOT are packed with hyacinth. “If they clean these two places, there will be marked reduction in flooding in Perumbakkam, Sholinganallur and Thoraipakkam. The monsoon has only begun now, and we are pretty nervous about what is in store this time,” he said.

Harsha Koda of Federation of OMR Resident Associations said, monsoon has just now begun, but authorities have barely done anything. “This time, we don’t want to rely on the authorities and have tried our best to be self-sufficient. We have created a group called ‘Impact’ and have taken measures to mobilise everything from motor pumps to medical assistance,” he said.

V. Santhanam, a resident of Chromepet said, even now not all storm water drains have been cleaned in and around Tambaram and Chromepet and people in low-lying areas would find it particularly tough when the city continues to get consistent rains in the next few months.

After rains, commuting through areas like Perungudi, Thoraipakkam and Sholinganallur have become even more tough as both the main road and the service roads are in bad shape. There was no waterlogging on the long stretch of Perumbakkam Main Road up until almost Sholinganallur junction, but the roads are in a pitiable shape now, the local residents said.