Squatters shrink canal in Anna Nagar West

CHENNAI: Encroachments that have reduced the 40-footwide water channel in Anna Nagar West extension to a five foot-wide drain have not been removed despite several representations by residents. Houses, shops and places of worship have come up on the 5km channel that runs from Ambattur industrial estate till Anna Nagar West extension, draining into Otteri nalla.
J M S Nagarjunan, vicepresident of Anna Nagar west extension association, said, “A copy of our representation to tahsildar and collector of Ambattur and Tiruvallur was endorsed to the Madras high court... The court took cognizance of this letter on November 21, 2017, and forwarded it to the officer on special duty, state legal services authority. The legal cell wrote to the Tiruvallur collector to submit action taken report. But there was no reply. When I filed a query under the right to information Act, the public information officer at the Ambattur tahsildar office wrote asking me the file number to furnish the details. How will we know the file number?”
N Venkataraman, a resident, said “The water has begun overflowing into the road and into our houses because the channel is completely encroached. The industrial estate is letting water into the drain adding to the existing woes causing water stagnation and overflowing of water during rains.”
Nagarjunan pointed out that recently the state chief secretary had conducted a meeting and stated that all encroachments should be removed ahead of the monsoon, but no action has been taken in this case. The collector and the tahsildar were contacted but there was no response.