Flood-hit units look to govt for help

Severely hit by the recent diversion of floodwater towards Estate from the GST road, near Kathipara junction, the Industrial Estate Manufacturers Association, Guindy, seeks the state government's intervention to find a permanent solution to the problem.

Over 40 per cent of the units in the industrial estate was flooded due to the diversion of floodwater towards the Guindy Industrial Estate to ensure smooth traffic flow in the nearby Kathipara junction during the heavy downpour a few days ago.

K Gopalakrishnan, president of the Industrial Estate Manufacturers' Association said that a lot of storm water drains had been damaged and sewerage points were overflowing after the flood.

He said a collective effort, involving the state government, all the municipalities and the unit holders would be required to solve the recurrent problem.

He said that lack of effective storm water drains in Alandur and Adambakkam resulted in the roads getting inundated near Kathipara junction. He blamed the people living near Adambakkam lake for breaching the bunds and diverting flood water towards Guindy.

The water flow from Adambakkam and Alandur should be diverted to Saidapet river, he suggested.

Gopalakrishnan said the width of the canal passing via the industrial estate to Saidapet river shrunk from 14 ft to 2 ft due to encroachments and dumping of waste. He sought the assistance of government to widen the canal outside the estate. The widening work inside the estate would be taken care of by the association, he said.

A special purpose vehicle has been floated to upgrade infrastructure such as roads, sewage system, storm water drains, rainwater harvesting system, waste treatment plant and street lighting in the Guindy Industrial Estate with an investment of about Rs 11 crore.

The 420-acre Guindy industrial estate, one of the oldest in the country, has about 700 units.