WRD initiates Tiruneermalai lake restoration, but residents seek more funds for comprehensive revamp

WRD initiates Tiruneermalai lake restoration, but residents seek more funds for comprehensive revamp

The Water Resources Department has set the ball rolling for the restoration of Tiruneermalai lake, one of the major waterbodies in the southern suburbs. Residents, however, demand that additional funds be allocated for its comprehensive restoration, including the improvement of the surplus channel.

Spread over an area of nearly 180.90 hectares, the lake has a storage capacity of nearly 30 million cubic feet. The Department has now begun the process to initiate a project worth ₹5.15 crore to increase the storage capacity by desilting, and also carry out various improvements works.

However, members of the Tiruneermalai Periya Eri Pathukappu Kuzhu said the funds would not be enough for a comprehensive restoration. They recalled that a project was previously chalked out, seeking more funds for the rejuvenation of the lake and its surplus channel, Nattu Kalvai.

Citing a RTI reply, B. Saravanan, a resident of Tiruneermalai, said a project worth ₹53.13 crore was planned to rejuvenate Nattu Kalvai and mitigate floods in the neighbouring areas. While it was a welcome move to improve the lake’s storage capacity, he said the efforts would not be complete without rejuvenating the surplus channel, which has shrunk in size.

The department has not allocated funds for the improvement of the Nattu Kalvai, which is imperative to alleviate floods in localities such as Ranga Nagar and Saraswathypuram, he said. Besides removing the encroachments, the surplus channel, which joins the Adyar river, also needs to be desilted, he added.

The Federation of Welfare Associations, Tiruneermalai, recently submitted a representation to Pallavaram MLA E. Karunanidhi, seeking the widening of Nattu Kalvai for a length of two km, increase the bund height to prevent entry of sewage, and mitigate floods in nine surrounding localities.

Officials of the WRD noted that the work to rejuvenate the lake and its surplus channel would be taken up in phases. In the first phase, silt in the lake would be cleared to improve the storage capacity. Besides strengthening the bund, flood regulator would also be repaired. The allocated fund would be sufficient to improve the lake’s infrastructure.