Chennai Corporation combines flood prevention tech and public utility through upcoming sponge parks

CHENNAI: With an aim of reducing flooding in urban areas while simultaneously providing recreational spaces for the public, the Greater Chennai Corporation has begun construction on a new sponge park at the Mathur MMDA Colony in the Manali zone.

According to a report in The Hindu, the project that is coming up at a cost of Rs 8.06 crores will be completed by April next year. The project is funded through the Urban Flood Risk Mitigation Project and the National Disaster Management Fund and is designed with a massive rainwater recharge capacity of 1,200 cubic metres. Officials said that the park will span 7,652 square meters and will be linked to the Kosasthalaiyar Basin via the existing storm-water drain network.

The plans for the sponge park includes a contemporary water management system that has detention tanks with a 900-cubic-metre capacity and a 300-cubic-metre rainwater-harvesting tunnel that would be constructed using German technology. Officials said that these features aim to retain rainwater and facilitate groundwater recharge.

Apart from the environmental benefits, the development will also offer significant recreational facilities. Plans for the same includes a big football pitch, a kabaddi court, a synthetic rubber jogging track, a tiered grass seating built above the detention tanks and a deep rain garden. "The design aims to convert impervious surfaces into permeable ones while combining public utility with flood prevention," said a GCC official.

This initiative is part of a larger announcement made during the 2025-26 state budget session which promised seven climate-resilient sponge parks across the state at a total cost of Rs 88 crores.