The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has asked the Department of Municipal Administration and the Coimbatore Corporation to look into the complaint of Cheran Maanagar House Owners’ and Residents’ Welfare Association.
The Association has complained to the Commission that the Corporation had failed to periodically clean the drains in the area, which it had annexed in 2011.
Association president K. Sundararaj says the organisation had sent petitions and reminders to the Corporation 10 times from December 2015 to November 2017. It also wrote to the Department seeking to redress the residents’ grievances. But, nothing happened.
The Cheran Housing Cooperative Society, Thudiyalur, developed the area in 1989-90 for employees of the then Cheran Transport Corporation (now, Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation) and at present, there are 568 houses on over 20 streets.
The drain the area has was constructed then and thereafter the locality saw no improvement to drain – be it under the then Vilankurichi Panchayat or now under the Corporation, says resident N.R. Ravishankar.
As a result, the drain on several streets have been filled with earth, in a few places it is damaged and in others, there is hardly any flow of water. And, wherever the drain is not damaged, it is filled with bushes and choked for want of maintenance.
The Corporation has not bothered to clean the drain regularly in all these years, complains Association’s joint secretary G. Krishnadas.
Mr. Sundararaj says that the residents’ demand is that the Corporation immediately clean the drain wherever possible and rebuild damaged stretches in the months to come.
The Association has also complained to the Commission about the poor shape of tanks used for distributing drinking water. Mr. Ravishankar says that the Corporation has not cleaned the two tanks in the area for long.
Cheran Maanagar has two tanks and as many sumps, of 50,000 litre capacity each. The Corporation fills water from the Pilloor drinking water supply scheme for distribution to the 568 houses.
Mr. Sundararaj says that the Corporation cannot clean one of the two tanks even if it wanted to because the flight of stairs leading to the top is damaged.
Mr. Krishnadas alleges that the Corporation does not clean the sumps too.
A Corporation employee connected with water supply says that the Corporation does clean the tanks and sumps. To clean the tank where the stairs are damaged, the Corporation pumps chemicals from the sump and then flushes out the tank.
As for cleaning the drain and rebuilding damaged stretches, a Corporation engineer says a proposal is ready, but the civic body is awaiting funds to take up the work.
Asked about the Commission’s letter, a senior officer, on condition of anonymity, says he can neither confirm or deny that the Corporation has received such a letter because his superiors could be handling the issue.