The Madras high court on Tuesday pulled up the Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC), questioning what it was doing since the 2015 floods as several parts of the city continued to be inundated following rains since Saturday. “Half the year, we are longing for water, and for the rest of the year, we are dying in water in Chennai,” the court said.
A bench of Chief Justice Sanjib Banerjee and Justice P D Audikesavalu warned of suo moto proceedings if the waterlogging was not brought under control. It criticised the corporation for its failure in taking up adequate measures to prevent the inundation.
The bench made the observations while hearing a public interest litigation.
On November 7, Chennai received 21cm of rainfall, the highest recorded in a day in November since 2015 when floods in Chennai left people marooned for a week.
Following the 2015 floods, the state and GCC announced projects to improve the stormwater drain network in the city. The corporation, in its 2016-17 budget, allocated ₹415 crore for drains.