Improvement of Storm Water Drainage System

a) Covering of storm water drains using granite stone

For the purpose of assessing the situation of drainage system at the start of the EcoCity project, the road stretches of the entire core area have been codified into 34 stretches. The status of drainage system has been accordingly classified. Almost 97% of the entire core area has storm water drains except for the Govindaraja Swamy Temple Street. Steps and other structures have been haphazardly constructed over the drains to enter into the houses or shops that are on road side thereby posing ugly streetscape. The storm water drains in only five of the stretches are completely covered (about 15%). The storm water drains in the rest of the stretches are either partly covered (about 17%) or covered but have holes (about 29%).

Most of the drains are stagnant with silt and garbage thrown in them. The stagnant drains pose severe sanitation problems and health risks. Also, they pose risks of overflow and flooding in the rainy season. Due to unsanitary conditions posed by these storm water drains, about 0.9 m to 1.5 m space by the side of the drains was practically being unused thereby reducing the width of the road.

The storm water drains, before

As a pilot work, the project activity on covering of storm water drains around Govindaraja Swamy Temple was taken up. To maintain compatibility with the temple structure, similar granite stones with 15 cm thickness have been used for covering the drains. The drains have been repaired or reconstructed using cement concrete and the slabs of granite stone have been fixed over them. Manholes have been provided for cleaning purposes and GI screens are being fixed intermittently for holding grit and waste from entering the storm water drains.

By covering the drains, the flow of waste water has considerably improved and there has been drastic reduction in the garbage and silt in the drains. The covering of the drains is also deterring the people from defecating or urinating into the drains. The granite slabs used for covering the drains are too heavy to be lifted and hence reduce the chances of being taken away or removed by people or even being broken or damaged.

Similar efforts are now being extended to all the major drains in the core area.

The storm water drains after covering with stones