NGT suggests Tamil Nadu govt to convert part of race club land into lake

CHENNAI: The southern bench of the National Green Tribunal has suggested the state government to convert a portion of Madras Race Club land into a lake to mitigate urban flooding.

The government recently had taken possession of the race club land measuring 160.86 acres, spanning Venkatapuram, Adyar and Velachery.

On Sunday, it had issued orders to transform 118 acres of the land into an eco-park featuring a public horticulture garden, green spaces and other public utilities to enhance the people’s physical and mental well-being, while boosting the city’s green cover.

However, the NGT bench, which has been hearing a case on Velachery lake getting polluted with sewage and flooding, on Monday, asked the government to explore the possibility of creating a lake in the proposed eco-park to hold rainwater during the monsoon that would boost water table as well as mitigate the problem of flooding.

The bench has posted the case for final hearing on Tuesday and sought response from the state government. Additional Advocate General J Ravindran will represent the government in the final hearing.

During the last hearing, the NGT had directed the forest department and Water Resources Department to identify the waterbodies within the Guindy National Park, and if available, make use of the same by deepening them. “We also directed the WRD and the Forest department to inspect and report to us.