Work expedited to construct macro drains to carry flood waters to Buckingham Canal

Two macro drains are being rapidly constructed at Sholinganallur and Thoraipakkam to channel rainwater into the Buckingham Canal, sources from the Highways Department revealed. A traffic diversion from the Medavakkam-Sholinganallur Road to the ECR-OMR Link Road (Kalaignar Karunanidhi Road) is planned, spanning 1.7 km. The drain will run across Rajiv Gandhi Salai, requiring road excavation. Temporary arrangements are being made to facilitate traffic movement from the Medavakkam direction via ELCOT.

Concerning the drain on Thoraipakkam Radial Road, work on the section from Pallavaram to OMR junction is complete, with ongoing efforts on the Radial Road extension towards the Canal, covering 0.3 km of the 0.8 km. The CMRL contractor at the site has been instructed to prioritize this project due to its significance in flood mitigation within the IT corridor. The Department aims to finalize these projects before the Northeast monsoon.

Plans for a third cut and cover macro drain from Anai Eri in Pallikaranai to the marsh were in progress, but were not executed. Completion of the main project running from Anai Eri to the marsh is anticipated to take longer as the department is awaiting revised administrative approvals from the State government.