Velachery Lake is one of the many neglected lakes in the city. The lake, once brimming with water catering to the needs of the public and being a source of irrigation, now presents a pathetic sight because of gross apathy. The lake, originally measured an area of 265.48 odd acres and the inhabitants of a vast area surrounding the lake, never faced water scarcity problems.

Sunset over Velachery Lake

Now, the lake has been encroached upon and the lake area has shrunk to a mere 57 acres, To make matters worse, the sewage from Maduvankarai and Alandur continues to be let out into the lake thereby making it a cess pool. Now water in the lake is unfit for consumption,

The Storm water canal connecting Velachery Lake to Pallikaranai Marshland has faced many hurdles since the start of the construction. This canal has been built in patches with many areas laying incomplete. After the flash floods in November 2004 and again in December 2005, construction work came to a stand still. This created hardships for residents and shopkeepers. According to reports in the press, most of the residents and commercial establishments have given their consent letters to the department for land aquistion. Some have gone to courts, where the cases are still pending.

Water from the flooded areas drained to Pallikaranai marsh
During the unprecedented rains at Chennai during November / December 2005 many parts of Velachery got flooded and canals were cut to drain the rainwater to Pallikaranai Marsh

Another Sunset view over Velachery Lake
The Velachery Lake looks beautiful at sunset time. The Lake could be developed as a Tourist Destination with boating arranged as in Muttukadu. Occasional announcements are made by the Government that Velachery Lake will be promoted as a Tourist Destination and the estimated cost for the same will be announced .

It is high time that the Government takes steps to promote Velachery Lake as a Tourist Destination with facilities for Boating and developing a park etc.,