Officials of the Public Works Department have started removing encroachments on the link channel connecting Pappan Kaalvai and the Adyar river in Goodwill Nagar in Perungalathur on Monday. The decision to remove the encroachments was taken after a recent survey by Kancheepuram Collector P. Ponnaiah. During the survey, they found that the waterway had been sold off as plots and several houses had been constructed on it. Mr. Ponnaiah ordered removal of 8 houses constructed on the channel immediately, as they were a blatant violation of the land utilisation rules. Officials also found that power connections were given to these encroachers, who used their political clout to sell them to unsuspecting buyers.
Kancheepuram revenue authorities on Monday announced that south Chennai which witnessed unprecedented flooding in 2015 will breathe easy during the ensuing monsoon as the reclamation of the encroached Adyar river is in progress at full pace.
“All the illegal structures will be cleared and the land will be handed over to the Public Works Department,” said a source from the District Administration. V. Rajasekaran, an activist from Residents Welfare Association from Varadarajapuram in Kundrathur block said that the culvert work on Mudichur Road-Kishkinta Road remains incomplete in various locations posing serious danger to the residents. The bunds of a small bridge connecting Royappa Nagar-Amudham Nagar should be strengthened well before the monsoon , he said. Otherwise, when the downpour is heavy, the floodwater may submerge both areas as in 2015, he cautioned.