Homes that eat roads: Ramps, gardens, vehicles extend into Chennai roads & pavements

Chennai: Residents of many affluent neighbourhoods in Chennai are encroaching upon public land to build staircases, gardens and ramps, which eat into pedestrian space. As the discourse around walkability and pedestrian-friendly streets gains momentum, house owners in RA Puram, Boat Club Road, T Nagar, Kodambakkam, Anna Nagar and Thiruvanmiyur, hijack pavements with extensions to their properties or park their vehicles on either sides of the carriageway. Unlike vendors who can be relocated, these encroachments seem permanent.Civic activist and secretary of Federation of Anna Nagar Residents Association Sandhya Vedullapalli drew attention to apartments in a few streets in Anna Nagar East that encroached on public land, with mini lawns, plants and flowerpots blocking the walkways. “When a compound wall juts out beyond the perimeter, it is considered a serious encroachment. Why are residential encroachments not being considered,” she asks.Such encroachments are often seen in recently developed plots, according to developers. “To park vehicles within their compound, many residents construct ramps extending 3-4ft beyond the property line onto public space. Many such residents are backed by local politicians,” says property developer Yogesh T.“A blocked footpath is problematic for everyone. Apart from wheelchair users, senior citizens, children, parents with strollers and regular walkers are all forced onto the road when pavements are obstructed, putting them at risk of injury,” said K Guruswamy, an advocate for disability rights, who uses a wheelchair.“Tamil Nadu Combined Development and Building Rules, 2019, requires buildings to maintain setbacks from the property boundary and street alignment, and ramps are to be contained within the site,” said Venugopal AV, programme manager, ITDP India. “Driveways have colonised pedestrian space, and there are widespread violations that go largely unchallenged,” he added.Ramps are deliberately built on a higher level as roads get re-laid every three to four years, according to architect Murali M. “Gardens and plants outside the premises might add aesthetic value to the streets, but they should not affect pedestrians. Without a width of at least 1.8m, walking becomes difficult,” he added.A Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) official said the civic body does not keep count of such encroachments separately, and that they are removed on a case to case basis. “There is no need to give a notice to the house owner if the encroached land belongs to GCC. We give oral instructions. If they don’t remove the encroachment themselves, GCC can remove it,” he said.“Mud from makeshift ramps seeps into the stormwater drains and create blockage, so they must be built with concrete,” he added. He said that roads are milled before laying them afresh and the records of the road height are maintained such that the level does not rise.When contacted, GCC commissioner Dr G S Sameeran said permanent encroachments which obstruct the pathway will be identified and removed. “Officers, engineers will be on rounds marking encroachments and removing them. Only if violators are seen being penalised will others be deterred,” he said.