Velachery - Infrastructure and Environmental Concerns

Infrastructure and Environmental Concerns

A major concern is that the recent rapid developments has also resulted in a few drawbacks, such as water scarcity, congestion of roads and the damage to the marshland. It is feared that in a few years unless something substantial is done, the marshlands would all be converted into residential and commercial properties.

Every November, Velachery is flooded by cyclonic rains. The major areas that are usually flooded are the low-lying areas around the Velachery Lake. A flood water drainage canal was constructed along the Velachery 100-feet (30 m) road. Due to encroachments, some part of the canal in the Velachery-Tambaram high road is not constructed completely. Generally it is felt that, after the canal was built; to a major extent, the flooding problem in many areas along the 100-feet road has decreased substantially. All the residential colonies that are lying south of Taramani link road got submerged in rain water during the floods in 2008 which was of moderate intensity. A major storm water drain project running all through the Taramani link road from vijaynagar bus stand in Velachery connecting South Buckingham canal is in progress. This project which is funded by the World Bank, is expected to bring much relief to the residents of flood prone Velachery.

There are also two big open to air dumping grounds. These spoil the underground water and are breeding grounds for mosquitoes and other flies and the frequent burning of the waste also creates lot of pollution problems to the people especially those traveling past it. It is a favorite shooting location among film makers and has been filmed in as far as 3 movies.

Now that Velachery has become a separate assembly constituency the woes of its residents are expected to be mitigated at a faster pace.