Coimbatore Corporation to change stormwater course of Valankulam, to construct drain on Trichy Road:

Coimbatore City Municipal Corporation (CCMC) has planned to change the stormwater course of Valankulam by constructing a drain on Trichy Road, according to civic body officials.

The Corporation requested approval from the National Highways Department in January, and received an oral concurrence from the NH authorities in June, following which work order was issued on June 24, said Corporation Commissioner M. Prathap. The overall project is worth ₹9 crore and works are expected to be completed in six months, he added. The drain is expected to extend for 2.1 km from Valankulam to Alvernia Matriculation Higher Secondary School at Ramanathapuram along Trichy Road.

According to Corporation Assistant Engineer G. Kamalakannan, the civic body intends to divert the water from Valankulam to Sanganoor canal. The line laid several years ago was from Valankulam to Ammankulam via a channel in Gandhinagar, and then to Sanganoor canal, followed by Singanallur tank.

According to the engineer, previously, the channel in Gandhinagar that connected Valankulam to Ammankulam was blocked by a Tamil Nadu Urban Housing Development Board unit in Gandhinagar. The channel became defunct and narrow over time. The existing stormwater drain connected to the channel from the northern side of the Trichy Road closing at the Olymbus area in Ramanathapuram, linked to several interior areas including Sowripalayam, Pankaja Mill Road, Ramakrishnapuram and Poosaripalayam, overflows during heavy showers and inundates the areas, he said .

“Now, with this new channel, the CCMC plans to divert the excess stormwater from Valankulam to Sanganoor canal and towards Singanallur, thus avoiding rainwater stagnation. Water could also be let out via this channel before red alerts or cloud bursts in the city, to avoid flooding from the tank,” Mr. Kamalakannan stated.