The Hindu              05.12.2013

Corporation promises completion of drain works

K. Rathna Kumar of Balasundaram Layout, Singanallur, has
been waiting for a storm water drain for long. For over a year, to be
precise. He is worried about it – not as much about the absence but the
Corporation leaving out the area while providing the storm water drain
to neighbouring areas.

The Corporation leaving out
the three streets of the layout is unfair. If the civic body can provide
the drain to neighbouring streets, why has it failed to extend the
drain to the area, he asks.

If it is the absence of
the drain for him, for other city residents it is the absence of
culverts and joints that is troubling them.

At many
places in the city, the Corporation has constructed the storm water
drain alongside roads but left incomplete the construction at junctions.

This has led to stagnation at the road junctions across the city.

This
led to repeated complaints from the public, forcing Mayor S.M. Velusamy
to ask the engineers to construct culvers and complete joints on a
war-footing. This was two months ago, when the count stood at 247.

According
to Commissioner G. Latha, the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal
Mission (JNNURM) wing officials led by P.A. Ganeshwaran have almost
completed the task in that of the 247 works, only 12 are pending as on
date. And, 21 works are in progress.

The Corporation will complete the work by December 15, 2013.

Explaining
the reasons for the delay, officials say that while constructing the
drain, the officials encountered trees, electric poles, water supply
pipelines, telephone cables or other obstacles and that delayed the
work.

Aside from completing the pending works, the
Corporation has also made considerable progress in the storm water drain
work in that of the 737 km to be constructed, the civic body has thus
far completed 684 km. It will complete the remaining km in the next few
weeks.