Located about 30 km from Chennai’s urban core, this lake lies along the city’s expanding fringe. An area once dominated by paddy fields and agricultural landscapes is rapidly transforming into a concrete jungle, with dense development and crisscrossing road networks.
Puthur Thangal, situated south of the Tambaram Air Force Station and north of the Vandalur Zoo, remains a highly significant water body for the region. Waters that once irrigated hundreds of acres of paddy fields are now hemmed in by apartment blocks and wide arterial roads. Along with this urban expansion have come garbage dumping, sewage inflows, invasive weed proliferation, weakened embankments, and encroachment, placing increasing stress on the lake’s ecological and hydrological functions.

Under the #BlueGreenChengalpattu Mission, the lake was taken up for restoration. From defining legal boundaries and increasing storage capacity to stopping garbage, sewage inflows, establishing nesting islands, and strengthening bunds, considerable effort went into reviving the lake.

Volunteer for Chengalpattu & her environment with E.F.I.