Chief Minister Jayalalithaa, on Wednesday sanctioned the construction of flyovers at two places – Kalavasal Junction and Goripalayam Junction – in order to ease traffic congestion in the city. She made the announcement in her concluding remarks at the conference of Collectors and police officers in Chennai.
The major announcements made by her for Madurai district included extension of the jurisdiction of the city police in co-terminus with that of the Madurai Corporation and sanction of an additional platoon. Traffic police stations would be sanctioned for Melur, Othakadai and Oomachikulam and two motorcycle patrol vehicles each for seven police stations in Madurai. Repeater station and 100 walkie-talkies would be sanctioned for Usilampatti, Sholavanthaan and Melur. Tahsildars and Revenue Divisional Officers would get wireless sets. A hostel would be constructed for police personnel near the Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court and the City Police Office would have a new building. Tamil Nadu Special Police companies would be provided for Madurai central prison.
Ms. Jayalalithaa presented a bouquet of development programmes for Ramanathapuram, Sivaganga and Virudhunagar districts. She unveiled a plan for the overall development of the southern districts, with special reference to this region. Part of the package was the creation of a special Socio Economic Development Fund for Sivaganga and Ramanathapuram as in the case of Dharmapuri and Krishnagiri districts.
Among the southern districts, Ramanathapuram got the maximum number of schemes sanctioned. They included upgrading of the district headquarters hospital to the level of a medical college hospital; creation of a unit for communicable diseases in the Rameswaram hospital and a mental hospital for Erwadi. In order to expedite industrialization of south Tamil Nadu, the Chief Minister announced the conversion of Ramanathapuram-Tuticorin road as a four-lane highway and its development as an industrial corridor. A mega power project would also be established in the district along with a solar energy park and fish processing parks. The government, she said, would start co-educational colleges in Kadaladi, Mudukulathur and Tiruvadanai. To improve water supply, it had been planned to construct four check dams across the Vaigai in the district. An additional building would be constructed in the Master Plan Complex for accommodating 35 departments now functioning in rented buildings. A bypass road would come around Parthibanur. It had been planned to install CC TV cameras at places of worship in Pillayarpatti, Rameswaram and Erwadi. Repeater stations for Tiruvadanai and Kamuthi and two highway patrols were the other announcements for the district.
Announcing the construction of a bus stand for Pillaiyarpatti, Ms. Jayalalithaa said that the overbridge on the left bank of the Vaigai at Manjalpattinam, connecting Ilayankudi and Paramakudi, would be repaired. A food processing training and research centre would come up in Sivaganga, she said. The Tangedco would set up a sub-station at Pottapalayam. Devakottai, Ilayankudi, Manamadurai and Singampunari would soon have traffic police stations and two armed reserve platoons would be sanctioned for Sivaganga, she said.
In order to augment facilities at the Theni Medical College, she sanctioned an MRI facility. The other announcements for Theni district included a sports hostel; road between Chinnamanur and Megamalai; admission of Tamil children staying on the border with Kerala in hostels in the district and a community hall at the border near Kannagi Temple for use by police personnel deployed for bandobust duty.
Roads leading to Tiruchendur temple would be renovated and a synthetic hockey turf would come up at Kovilpatti and a water sports centre would come up in Manappad. A government arts and science college would be sanctioned for Kovilpatti. Sea erosion prevention structures would come up in Vembaar, Veerapandipattinam, Periyathazhai, Kallamozhi and Keelavaipar. Touticorin would have a ship building yard and a desalination in Tuticorin. She announced an increase in subsidy for conversion of bottom trawlers by 50 per cent and subsidy for purchase of scuba diving equipment for skin divers. Three patrol boats would be provided for the Fisheries Department.
