Status: Not ApprovedHEAD: 24_Che_RS_UPDATED — Kitchen UthandiByline: R SaivenkateshKitchen for sanitary workers in Uthandi continues to be plagued by poor drainage R.Saivenkatesh@timesofindia.comChennai: A kitchen built for sanitary workers on a government school playground in Uthandi — which began operations in November 2025 despite strong public opposition — has developed serious drainage problems within three months of opening. Every morning, residents are unable to use the adjacent stretch for their walks as food waste and kitchen effluent spill onto the road, releasing a foul stench. “The issue recurs every now and then. The problem is also persistent in the evenings when the second round of cooking takes place,” said T. Kannan, a resident of the second main road. “It’s been happening ever since the cooking began,” he said.When TOI visited the site, there were food stains on the road. Holes had been deliberately made in the compound walls to allow kitchen waste overflowing from the drain/sump to pass through. “We have complained to our supervisor,” said a worker at the center. “The sump which collects the kitchen waste overflows every now and then. We cook for more than 10,000 conservancy workers employed in the southern region here every day.“The center operates out of a rehabilitation building constructed by the local panchayat in the 1990s for residents of the area. The vacant rooms in the building had also been used by the school administration for practical classes. The GCC’s decision to convert the facility into a kitchen drew fierce opposition, as additional structures — including a parking area — were built on school grounds, depriving students of a playground. “The authorities have done nothing to improve the drain facilities even though cooking happens on a low-scale. No extra drainage tank was set up. The existing facility is only adequate to manage the school’s load, said Chandrasekar Dharman, president of SOLVE, a residents’ welfare association in the area. Zonal officer Thirunavukarasu acknowledged the leakage issues, but said that they had only occurred in the past. “The cooking happens only on low-scale. We will go and inspect the area and resolve the issue at the earliest,” he added. MSID:: 128753856 413 |
