Following the lack of action by government officials for the maintenance of two ponds at Velachery, residents of the area took up the task of cleaning the water bodies themselves. The 'Save Water Bodies Velachery' group which consists of volunteers and activists, came together on Wednesday in order to remove the waste material from two ponds in the area, Puliyankeni Kulam located at Brahmin Street and Nattar Kuttai at Nattar Street.

Residents reported that the ponds were in a poor state after the dumping of garbage along the borders. The Corporation of Chennai also provided support for the initiative. Construction debris in the Nattar Kuttai was removed and the pond was deepened by an excavator. It was said that there was no action taken despite repeated petitions by locals. The residents have now requested for a compound wall, stormwater drains, the removal of water hyacinth and prevention of sewage inflow. Hopefully, their efforts will be appreciated with more response to the situation at hand. Meanwhile, let us refrain from making life difficult by disposing of waste in a responsible manner.