Release recommendations of Thiruppugazh Committee, Anbumani urges T.N. government

PMK president Anbumani Ramadoss on Sunday urged the State government to make the Thiruppugazh Committee report public and implement its recommendations after Chennai recorded heavy rainfall on Saturday.

In a statement, he said several parts of Chennai received rainfall of an intensity comparable to a cloudburst, and if such incidents were to become frequent, it would necessitate the urgent implementation of flood mitigation measures.

“For more than five years, the Pattali Makkal Katchi has been warning that climate change could lead to cloudburst-like situations in Chennai and that the city’s flood-prevention and stormwater drainage infrastructure must be strengthened to deal with them. Yesterday’s rainfall has only reinforced this warning. There is also a risk of the situation worsening this year due to the impact of El Niño. Taking these factors into consideration, the government must intensify flood-prevention measures,” he said.

There was a possibility that Chennai could receive even heavier rainfall in the coming days than what it experienced on Saturday. Climate change, which is threatening the world, could cause impacts beyond anyone’s imagination. “Keeping this in mind, it is the government’s responsibility to undertake comprehensive flood-prevention measures,” he said.

Even after 43 months, the Thirupugazh committee report has still not been made public. The previous DMK government had stated that the report contained a total of 161 recommendations on flood mitigation and that 101 of them were being implemented.

“However, no one knows what those 161 recommendations were or which 101 recommendations had actually been implemented,” he said. Chennai must not be allowed to be submerged by floods once again, he added.