Temple, church delaying flood wall raising

CHENNAI: A temple and a church, both identified as encroachments on the Keelkattalai surplus canal, are standing in the way of the completion of a flood retaining wall being built by the Public Works Department to protect areas in S Kolathur. The PWD undertook the construction in February last year at a cost of Rs 16.7 crore.

The wall, 1.7 km long and 4 meters wide, is complete except where encroachments stood, say officials. 
“This is a sensitive matter. We wanted to proceed with caution so as to not offend any community. There is, however, no doubt that the two structures are encroachments,” said an official requesting anonymity. Both the structures are close to each other.

The PWD officials said they were waiting for the revenue officials to issue Forms I&II so that they could carry out the removal with police assistance. “These are not houses; so, there are not many belongings to be shifted. Once the notice is issued, we will be able to finish the job in a week,” the official said. When Express contacted a revenue department official, he said he would check the location of the encroachments and why the notices had not been issued. 

Meanwhile, residents in the flood-prone areas of Kagithapuram in Sunnambu Kolathur hope to see the wall completed in time for the monsoon. “The surplus canal flows full even during moderate rains. During heavy rains, our localities had been flooded. We believe the wall will prevent this from happening,” said J Sankar, a Kagithapuram resident.