The Hindu : Tamil Nadu News : “Curb discharge of sewage into open spaces”

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Wednesday, Jan 23, 2008
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Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu

“Curb discharge of sewage into open spaces”

K. Manikandan

Environment and citizens’ groups seek action against erring tanker operators

Unabated: Sewage being discharged by a tanker lorry into a plot at Rajakilpakkam.

TAMBARAM: Environment and citizens’ groups across the southern suburbs of Chennai have appealed to the State government to take to task sewage tanker operators, who discharged raw, untreated sewage into open places, vacant housing plots and in waterbodies.

The demand was made by Evergreen Exnora – South Rajakilpakkam Federation for Environment Protection – that was formed with initiatives from a small group of residents of Tellus Avenue, Sivasakthi Nagar, Kaushik Avenue and surrounding areas that come under Sembakkam town panchayat, near Tambaram.

Members and office-bearers of the group pointed to the vast open tracts of housing plots that have come under layers of sewage let out by the tankers. Volunteers from Evergreen Exnora conducted a round-the-clock survey recently and noticed 40 lorry loads of sewage being let out into plots in Tellus Avenue.

As each lorry had a capacity of 12,000 litres, several lakh litres of sewage was being let out into the open and also near the sprawling Vengaivaasal Lake. The movement of the sewage tankers had also severely damaged the metal roads in their localities. When a couple of residents confronted the tanker operators, they were threatened by hostile crew.

It was then that they decided to form a group and fight together. Volunteers, who have documented the problem, said tanker operators had also sunk cement pipes below the metal roads to transport sewage to the farthest corner. A direct consequence of this problem was contamination of farm wells in the locality and a dip in the quality of water drawn from borewells sunk by residents.

A.R.D. Loganathan, president of Sembakkam town panchayat, said following complaints from the residents, the local body had prevented operators from letting out sewage and also warned of severe action if the operators continued.

As the problem was not restricted to Rajakilpakkam alone, it was time the State government viewed it more seriously. Engineers of Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board said as per norms, sewage tanker operators had to let out the waste only at the Chennai Corporation’s treatment plant in Perungudi, after making a payment of Rs. 100 per load.

They had pulled up several operators who violated the rules. Activists said as a trip to Perungudi meant more fuel consumption, the operators preferred to dispose sewage locally. The consequences were disastrous as land and water quality suffered irrepairable damage.

The government should form a monitoring committee with representation from police, local bodies and other government departments to eliminate the menace, they added.

Similar appeals have been made in the past by civic and environment groups in Tambaram, Pallavaram and Pallikaranai, but with no response from the government. These three pockets suffer more than any other due to letting out of sewage in open places, the residents said.

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