Pallavaram sewerage scheme to benefit locals

CHENNAI: Residents living in the southern suburban township of Pallavaram will no longer have to bother about their sewage and waste water. They are soon to have an underground sewerage system. According to Metrowater Managing Director Dr K Gopal, more than 1.5 lakh residents of the industrial township will benefit once the Rs 72.1 crore sewerage scheme is implemented.As part of the scheme, the government will provide 16,500 house service connections, he said. Metrowater officials said the agency would establish the main sewage pumping station for the locality at Kilkattalai and a sub-pumping station will come up in Nanmanalam near Chromepet.Under this scheme, a network of collection systems, sub pumping stations, lift stations and the main sewage pumping station have already been constructed. The waste water would be routed to the Perungudi sewage treatment plant for treatment and the pumping main line has already been laid till the Perungudi sewage treatment.The Metrowater official said that the scheme includes about 160-km long collection system, 6,004 manholes and three pumping stations that have been constructed. Works at the Perungudi sewage treatment plant have also been completed at a cost of Rs 54 crore, the Metro Water official said. The project will benefit people living in Essa Pallavaram, Zamin Pallavaram, Kilkattalai, Nemilichery, Chrompet and Hastinapuram. All these areas come under the Pallavaram Municipality.The facilities were inspected by minister for municipal administration and rural development, KP Munusamy, and minister for environment and pollution control, TKM Chinnaiah, on Wednesday.An underground sewerage network has been a long standing demand of the people living within the Pallavaram municipal limits, especially after the neighbouring Alandur Municipality built a network with contribution from the residents through a unique mode of funding. The current infrastructure development drive is being seen as the groundwork for the extension the limits of Chennai city following a decision to merge 42 local bodies surrounding the city.