Funds sought to clear weeds on urban stretches of the Cooum

The drive is estimated to cost ₹2.6 crore, say officials

The urban stretch of the Cooum river may be rid of the overgrown vegetation in several portions as the Water Resources Department has sought funds to carry out the task.

While the department has started desilting the channels in and around the city ahead of northeast monsoon, both the Cooum and Adyar rivers have been left out of the drive.

As part of the efforts to ensure free flow of floodwater during the monsoon, the department has planned to remove thick vegetation and desilt both the waterways in the city limits. The Cooum’s width varies from 70 metres to 250 metres in the city limits. The river bed is filled with seemai karuvelam trees (prosopis juliflora) and water hyacinth in several portions, including near Arumbakkam. Such major desilting operation was last carried out in 2017-18.