A complaint has been submitted to the Inland Waterways Authority of India (IWAI) seeking urgent intervention against alleged destruction and illegal construction activities along National Waterway-4, known as the Buckingham Canal, in Chengalpattu district.
In a letter addressed to the Regional Director of IWAI’s Kochi office, coastal activist K. Saravanan alleged that works under the Kovalam Sub-basin Reservoir Project, implemented by the State Water Resources Department, were being carried out without mandatory approvals from the authority.
The complaint states that the Buckingham Canal, notified as a national waterway under the National Waterways Act, 2016, falls under the jurisdiction of the Central government, and any activity affecting it requires prior clearance from IWAI.
Mr. Saravanan has alleged that while obtaining Coastal Regulation Zone clearance from the Tamil Nadu State Coastal Zone Management Authority in December 2025, the project proponents failed to disclose that the site falls within the limits of National Waterway-4, rendering the clearance legally untenable.
He has further alleged that large concrete structures and embankments have been built on the canal and its backwaters without technical approval, altering the natural course and potentially affecting future inland navigation. The complaint also points to sand dumping at multiple locations, which has reportedly blocked sections of the canal and disrupted water flow.
