Chennai: After resurfacing from a flood in 2015, Chennai is now ironically bracing itself for an imminent drought as all four lakes around the city have dried up leading to shortage of drinking water.
According to an NDTV report, the four main reservoirs -- Poondi, Red Hills, Cholavaram and Chembarambakkam -- have almost gone dry, a major cause for the drought like situation.
Tamil Nadu is facing its worst water crisis situation in 140 years where the drinking water supply to the state's capital has been cut down by 50 per cent whereas the city requires atleast 830 million litres of water everyday, water supply officials said. Authorities have pressed called for 300 water tankers in the city to ease the situation.
Parallels to the droughts in 2003, considered to be the worst in the recent years, have been drawn. Notably, rain harvesting was made a norm then to manage the crisis.
The report further added that Veeranam Lake in Neyveli, a town more than 200 km away from Chennai which receives supply through a huge pipeline, is parched too. Authorities are taking all efforts to try and pump at least 80 million litres a day through the same pipeline.
Apart from desalination plants in Chennai, water is also being brought in from stone quarries in Kancheeputam and Thiruvallur, the authorities added.
Green activists have said the drought like situation is due to the ill-maintenance of thousands of water bodies in Chennai and its neighbouring districts.
