Residents of Royapuram blocked traffic
protesting against power cut, lack of water and other essential commodities, on Tuesday.
At 3.30 p.m., traffic began to pile up on S.N. Chetty Street in Royapuram that leads to Ennore High Road and Kasimedu. Many MTC buses and private vehicles were stranded on the road owing to the protest.
G. Thangamani, a 50-year-old resident of Royapuram, said they had been suffering for two days without power supply. “We know residents of other parts of the city have also been suffering without power. But there is no response to any complaint made here and we don’t know how long we can pull on without electricity. That is why we resorted to this protest. Otherwise who would even pay heed to our needs,” she asked.
Another resident, Kamala Palanisamy, said the trees that were uprooted had started to emanate foul smell and there was accumulation of garbage. “This has attracted a lot of a mosquitoes. I have a two-year-old son and I don’t want him to contract any disease. North Chennai is always neglected and no one ever comes to clean this mess here,” she alleged.
Residents said that even supply of milk and vegetables had been disrupted in the area. “There is no milk to even feed my child. Where do we go hunting for basic supplies,” she asked.
Commuters felt frustrated after being stuck in the traffic for a while. Ananda Krishnan, who was heading to Kasimedu, said, “I have been standing here for the past half hour. As vehicles have piled up, I’m not able to even reverse and head in another direction. While I feel bad for the residents, I’m agitated too because we have been punished for no fault of ours.”
