Residents of Ennore’s Thazhangkuppam want seawall opening to remain

Residents of Thazhangkuppam in Ennore have urged the Tamil Nadu government to ensure that the opening in the seawall near their village remains open.

Rough seas have caused a portion of the Ennore Express Road to be damaged recently. “The sand and stones beneath the road had begun to slip away due to wave action. The Highways department has temporarily reinforced that section of the road with sandbags,” said an official of the department.

“If any kind of activity is to be undertaken along the coast, we require CRZ [Coastal Regulation Zone] clearance. So, we are working towards getting that. We will ensure that the portion of the road is safe and motorable. Our idea is to close that seawall so that the road will not be damaged in the future,” the official said.

P. Sasikumar of the fishermen panchayat of Thazhangkuppam, however, said that around 25 non-motorised boats belonging to fishermen from the village are kept there. “They fish within 500 m of the village. If this opening is closed, they will have to travel 2 km to the estuary, rowing diagonally across from the village, which would take an entire day. This simply would not be possible,” he said.

Beach access

S. Ganesan, a resident, said that this opening is used by residents from nearby villages as a beach on weekends. “There are not many openings in the seawall for beach access. This is called Thazhangkuppam Beach, and if this opening is closed, there would be no trace of our beach. Boulders have been placed on either side of the opening. If more boulders are placed like two elephant tusks, it would protect both the road and our beach. If the government could add two more sets of boulders outside these, it would further help reduce wave action and erosion,” he said.