The Water Resources Department has begun using imported machinery on an experimental basis to desilt South Buckingham canal. According to officials of WRD, the desilting is part of the improvement work being undertaken on the 13-km stretch between Okkiyam Madu and Muttukadu under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM). The project, which involves widening and desilting of the canal, is worth Rs.46.86 crore. An official said about 200 metres of the canal near Sholinganallur is being cleaned on a trial basis using machinery from the U.S.