CHENNAI: Andhra Pradesh releasing Krishna river water to Tamil Nadu may bring succour to city residents who fight water shortage every summer, but the canal carrying water is a shambles. Apathy of the public works department (PWD) has left the 26km-long channel with broken concrete walls some of which have collapsed entirely on several stretches.This has given access to people living near the canal to bathe and wash clothes. According to hydrogeologist J Saravanan, such activities cause low intensity pollution which can go up if the number of people thronging the canal keeps on increasing. Also, around 10% of the water is lost through evaporation in the absence of initiatives to conserve the resource, a PWD official from Tiruvallur said.Krishna water flows through the canal between Zero Point and Poondi Reservoir in Tiruvallur district. When TOI visited the canal, it found that concrete walls at Pondavakkam village were damaged. “The walls crumbled during rain five years ago. Nothing has been done to repair it,” S Murugan, a resident of Pondavakkam, said.A decade ago, Sri Sathya Sai Central Trust took up the initiative of repairing the channel. Concrete side walls and boulder walls were constructed so that water released from Kanadeluru reservoir in Andhra Pradesh reached Poondi reservoir without any obstruction.However, maintenance has been poor thereafter. An official attached to the irrigation wing of PWD in Tiruvallur district said the concrete walls were repaired between January and March every year.The canal, which flows through 10 villages before reaching Poondi, may quench Chennai’s thirst, but to the villagers it is just another source of water. A woman, Madhumitha, who was washing clothes by it said, “This water is unclean and not potable. We use it for cleaning purposes.”Water experts said authorities must spread awareness among the local population to conserve water. “It is essential to ensure that the water is not polluted even if it is treated in Chennai,” said Saravanan.Saravanan said loss of water due to evaporation can be arrested by covering the open canal with solar panels. Gujarat already has such a project.“The humidity may increase after solar panels cover the canal but it reduces the entry of sunlight and brings down the rate of evaporation,” he said. This apart, saplings could be planted on either side of the canal for promoting a green environment.When contacted, PWD sources said Krishna river water was treated at plants in Red Hills and Chembarakkam before public distribution. “Steps are being taken to keep people away from the canal,” an official said.

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