TANGEDCO’s civil works have blocked the flow of the Kosasthalai river and damaged mangroves and the riverbed in two places in Puzhuthivakkam near Ennore. A three-member team consisting of Prof. Janakarajan, Poovulagin Nanbargal G. Sundarrajan and musician T.M. Krishna that verified the violation at the behest of the Save Ennore Creek campaign and local fisherfolk said TANGEDCO cannot be exempted from the law and should not be allowed to damage waterbodies. Already, more than 1000 acres of the river’s backwaters are heavily contaminated with flyash from the leaking pipelines of TANGEDCO. An order of the National Green Tribunal directing TANGEDCO to clear out the flyash has been ignored by the electricity company. Now, a bridge to support an pipeline for carrying coal-ash from Stage III of North Chennai Thermal Power Station to the leaking ash dyke in Seppakkam is being constructed by dumping construction debris and sand on the riverbed and the water courses. The current construction is happening alongside the existing ash pipeline road that has the old and leaking pipelines for TANGEDCO’s Stage I and II power plants. TANGEDCO has not obtained environmental clearance or Consent to Operate under Air and Water Acts for this project.
A second bridge is being constructed to carry a coal conveyor belt and seawater from Kamarajar Port to TANGEDCO’s Ennore SEZ power plant. Instead of using existing facilities, including the Chettinad Coal Yard – also illegally constructed – and minimising damage to the river, TANGEDCO is building new facilities that have destroyed mangroves, damaged the river bed, blocked the flow of water and harmed the livelihood of fisherfolk. The ongoing construction is in violation of license conditions that require TANGEDCO to ensure that its civil works do not block the tidal flow of water or harm fisher livelihoods. The inspection team observed that the Ennore backwaters resemble an environmental crime scene, and the TNPCB is clearly missing in action. Pointing out that the backwaters are critical for Chennai’s flood and water security, and for the livelihoods of thousands of fisherfolk, the team observed that the TNPCB is incapable of regulating powerful government companies like TANGEDCO. The Government of Tamil Nadu should step in to ensure that state public sector units treat waterbodies with respect and operate within the framework of law.