On the last day of filing nominations for local body elections on Thursday, the Coimbatore Corporation saw 38 persons filing papers for the election to Mayor. Among those were N. Karthik, the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam nominee, and U.K. Sivagnanam, the Communist Party of India (Marxist) nominee.
R. Chinnaiyan and S. Pachamuthu, both from the Congress, also filed their nominations, as the party is yet to announce the nominee for the Mayoral election. Party sources said that one of them would be made the official candidate and the other would give way.
The DMK nominee told reporters that during 2006-11, a sum of Rs. 1,500 crore was spent on implementing various welfare schemes and infrastructure development activities in the Corporation areas. He added that 95 per cent of the work had been completed under the Pilloor Phase II scheme and water supply would begin in a month.
Mr. Karthik said that sub-ways would be created in congested areas near Coimbatore Medical College Hospital, Ukkadam, Gandhipuram, Hope College, and Railway Station. He was accompanied by former Minister Pongalur N. Palanisamy, former MP's M. Kannapan and M. Ramanathan and party's city unit secretary M. Veeragopal.
Mr. Sivagnanam said that problems related to water supply would be solved by implementing the Pilloor Phase II scheme and it would be extended to the newly created 40 wards. He said that an inquiry would be conducted into the projects implemented under Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission.
