Most of the city’s minor canals are choked with plastic
The city’s minor waterways, meant to carry rainwater, have become sewage feeder canals that convey domestic sewage into Adyar and Cooum. Indiscriminate garbage dumping by residents and alleged diversion of untreated sewage by Metrowater have contributed to the mess since the waterways were cleaned up last year.
Chennai Corporation, which maintains the waterways, is set to complete desilting the canals before the northeast monsoon begins in October.
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Road relaying work to begin on 2000 stretches across Chennai
The Greater Chennai Corporation has received a go-ahead to relay roads across the city before the monsoon, at a cost of Rs 300 crore. All the roads that have been damaged by line agencies will get a makeover ahead of the northeast monsoon, Corporation officials said.
Following complaints from residents of many of the 200 wards, civic officials have urged line agencies not to dig up newly laid roads for at least six months, sources said. According to official estimates, at least 30% of the roads were dug up within a year of them being relaid.
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Chennai Corporation to collect conservancy charges for trash collection
Chennai Corporation will soon make changes to its by-laws, to collect conservancy charges for door-to-door trash collection.
The Solid Waste Management Rules of 2016 allow civic bodies to charge for conservancy operations. “Outlying municipalities have implemented these provisions. Chennai Corporation will also start charging for conservancy operations soon,” said a senior Corporation official. Officials said the charges would be similar to those collected by outlying municipalities. Pallavaram Municipality charges Rs 30 to Rs 60 per month.
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State Government announces plans to revive Corporation road projects
The AIADMK government on Monday announced the revival of two high-cost projects – formation of link road connecting Greenways Road with Durgabai Deshmukh Road near Thiru-Vi-Ka Bridge in Adyar, and a flyover at the intersection of Madhya Kailash-IT Corridor. Years ago, the DMK Government had given up these plans due to reports of non feasibility.
“It would be taken up at a cost of Rs 30 crore,” the CM said, while replying to the debate on demand for grants for highways department. The project had found mention in the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority’s(CMDA) comprehensive transportation study report of 2010, but the project did not take off.
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Comprehensive Fire Safety Management plan for T Nagar
According to a tender notice issued by the CMDA, they are looking for a consultant to prepare a detailed project report on ‘a Comprehensive Fire Safety Management Plan for Theyagaraya Nagar in Chennai Metropolitan Area (CMA)’. The objective of the report is to evolve a comprehensive fire safety management plan for the area by involving inter-departmental coordination and community participation. It stressed the need to focus on T Nagar to ready it for any future emergencies. One year ago, a massive fire in the Chennai Silks building in T Nagar highlighted the complete lack of fire safety and preparedness of this commercial district.
It also talks of a community-oriented fire safety plan involving building owners, tenants and local NGOs in partnership with government departments. Local residents are, however, far from convinced.
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City suburbs running out of dumpyards
Smaller urban local bodies dotting the southern boundaries of Chennai are all running short of space to dump their trash. At least an acre of land is required to dump the waste generated by a neighbourhood with 10,000 residents.
“We have instructed the local bodies to compost and recycle waste to the maximum possible extent to reduce the input quantity at landfills,” said S Santhakumar, assistant director of town panchayats, Kancheepuram.
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