Untreated sewage flows into Cooum near Koyambedu

Cleared - mani
Chennai: Rail Nagar, near Koyambedu, which has about 2,000 residents, illegally discharges sewage directly into the Cooum, as the sewer lines are not connected to any treatment plant. Rail Nagar is one among the 97 identified locations along the Cooum, letting out untreated sewage and dumping garbage as well as construction debris.
Residents also complain that garbage dumpsters are overflowing in the locality, as conservancy workers do not clear the solid waste regularly.
Despite repeated attempts to contact WRD officials, there was no response.
A Metrowater official said they terminated a few illegal sewer line connections in the locality and that the rest would soon be identidied and the connections terminated, he said.
D Sugumaran of Rail Nagar said people's trust in govt initiatives to restore the river has completely faded. He added that residents have repeatedly complained to the Tamil Nadu Animal Welfare Board and various NGOs to address the issue of stray animals in the area, but no action has been taken so far.
G Madhan Kumar, another resident, said that although four garbage bins had been placed outside Rail Nagar, Corporation workers did not clear them regularly. As a result, garbage overflows, worsening the already foul-smelling environment. "With sewage on one side and overflowing trash on the other, the situation becomes unbearable, especially during the monsoon when the contaminated river water seeps onto the roads and stagnates," he said.
G Sundarrajan of Poovulagin Nanbargal said, "it is very unfortunate that rivers and lakes in Chennai have become sewage carriers." Referring to a survey, he said there were 880 points in the city that let sewage into the Cooum River. He also said that in order to restore the lake, sewage and dumping debris into the river should be stopped, and smaller sewage treatment modular plants should be built across the city.
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