Extending the deadline for its ongoing stormwater drain (SWD) project in Chennai once again, the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) has announced that it will take ten more days to complete the work. Although the project seems to be nearing completion, activists are not happy with the ‘unusually’ rapid pace of work.
Initially in June, GCC had set a September 15 deadline for a 59-km SWD network. But in the first week of September, officials said that only 34% of the work was completed, and extended the deadline to September 30. They said that the contractors’ work was slowed due to intermittent rains. Now, in less than a month, the Corporation claims that 80% work is already over, and has said that the remaining 20% will be completed in ten days. This is despite Chennai witnessing rain showers on almost a daily basis even after September 15.
Activists have questioned the quality of work done, since contractors who took three months to complete 34% of work have now purportedly completed 46% of work in less than one month.
Reacting to the sudden increase in the pace of work on stormwater drains, Jayaram Venkatesan, founder of the anti-corruption organisation Arappor Iyakkam, told TNM, “This raises questions regarding the quality of construction of these stormwater drains. The Corporation doesn’t seem to have particularly inspected the quality aspect at any of the SWD work sites. Any possible deviations from quality standards by contractors will come at a cost for both the citizens and GCC.”
Reacting to Jayaram’s comment, Chennai Mayor R Priya told TNM that the citizens can be assured of the quality of construction.
She added that the deadline has been extended (for a second time) to October 10, and that GCC is currently focusing on this 59-km stretch as it covers the areas which were inundated during monsoon last year. “We are not planning to levy fines on contractors for the incomplete work as of now because we can confirm that the delay is significantly due to frequent rain,” she said.
As a result of incomplete SWD work and the onset of monsoons, residents of many parts of Chennai including Guindy, Choolaimedu, Arumbakkam and Madipakkam have reported damaged roads, open SWD worksites, and flooding of sewage water after contactors damaged drainage pipes.
Noting the conditions of several roads in South Chennai, Jayaram said, “If a majority of work (46%) was completed in 15 days, why did it take contractors three months to complete 34% of work? If they can complete their work quickly, then they should have wrapped up by July this year, allowing GCC enough time to lay new roads wherever necessary.”
Commenting on the sewage water flooding at SWD worksites, a senior official from the concerned department told TNM, “Stormwater drain lines are usually located at the end of the road and hence, while digging, some other pipes might get damaged. We have instructed all the concerned departments to rectify these errors immediately.”
In October last year, Muthukrishnan, a 23-year-old journalist who worked with Puthiya Thalaimurai’s digital team, passed away after he fell into an unfinished stormwater drain trench. Mayor Priya said that to ensure commuters’ safety, zonal level teams have been formed to ensure that contractors barricade work sites with green cloth. “Previously, during an inspection, we had levied a Rs 20,000 fine on five contractors who were not barricading open trenches. We will continue to levy fines if contractors don’t abide by these rules,” Priya said.
It is to be noted that Chennai city’s integrated stormwater drain project has only been completed in central Chennai (Adyar and Coovum river basin). The drains which are to be connected to the Kosasthalaiyar and the Kovalam basins are expected to be completed by 2024 and 2025 respectively, Mayor Priya told TNM. GCC has spent close to Rs 1,991 crore in completing 786 km of stormwater drain network in the city thus far.