Chennai Floods

Photo Courtesy: technoidol_veera

For the past couple of days, a lot of bikes and cars have been stranded on water-logged roads in Chennai. I got stuck up in knee-deep water today on one of the lanes near my home and my bike gave up and silenced in the water. But by God’s grace, I was able to start the bike immediately and reach the office without any further problems. All the roads in Chennai are flooded. There is no discrimination as to whether it is a main road or a small lane. Water gets logged on both the sides of the road and pedestrians and motorists find it very difficult to move around. Even the newer roads and bridges have the same problem. This problem is regarded as one of Chennai’s legacy. Another major reason for water logging is poor drainage system. This is mostly attributed to the act of Chennai people who throw the garbage into the gutter. Whenever there is heavy rainfall, Chennai floats on water. There is no point in trumpeting on deaf ears (both civic authorities as well as the people). I think the Indian bike & car manufacturers have to resort to the 007 style and start manufacturing amphibious bikes and cars that run both on land and in water. At least, we can find innovative methods to live in these types of situations.