Tamil Nadu - Chennai   

Now, a car shed on road

— Photo: K. Pichumani

illegal structure: The car shed that blocks the junction of Hunter’s Lane and Kalathiappa Street in Choolai.

CHENNAI: Public road space is often taken up by parking of cars and two-wheelers, but now even car sheds are being built on the roads. In the case of Hunter’s Lane in Choolai, all efforts by the residents to do away with an illegal construction on the road have proved futile.

The struggle by the resident’s welfare association to remove the construction is an example of how easily public space can be encroached upon in the city.

About two years ago, a resident of Hunter’s Road built a car shed right on the road. He also constructed a wall that blocks the path of Kalathiappa Street into Hunter’s Road.

Residents tried to prevent the encroachment but could not. Then started a long paper trail to request the District Collector and the Chennai Corporation to remove the shed. In May last, the Kalathiappa Street Residents’ Association managed to get an order from the Collector directing the tahsildar of Purasawalkam – Perambur taluk to take action against the illegal construction.

When nothing happened, the residents used the provisions under the Right to Information Act seeking details of the action taken on the illegal construction. Letters were sent to the public information officer of the District Collectorate and the Appellate Authority and, finally, to the State Information Commission. The Commission ordered that information be supplied to the petitioner by March 24 this year.

Ashok Kothari, a resident of Kalathiappa Street, said that the residents’ association is yet to receive any information on the removal of the encroachment.

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