After a long lull in work, the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has resumed the laying of a 600 m stretch of the Ennore Expressway in north Chennai.
The stretch at Nalla Thanneer Odai Kuppam, though only a small one, is crucial since it only had a single lane and traffic jams occurred regularly. The road is used by containers to enter the Chennai Port.
Earth movers recently began to remove debris to lay the 8-lane road.
The expressway is part of the Ennore Manali Road Improvement Project (EMRIP), which aims to improve connectivity between Chennai and Ennore ports.
Official sources at NHAI said the road laying on this stretch would be completed in a month. V. Rajkumar, a resident of Theradi in Tiruvottiyur, who welcomed the widening of the stretch, expressed the hope that the fishermen, who made way for the widening would be provided with homes as soon as possible.
“Perhaps, the government can consider providing them with temporary shelters until the promised houses are constructed on a temple land,” he suggested.
Remaining work
The ₹603 crore EMRIP project still has about 700 m of road work remaining inside the Kasimedu Fishing Harbour and near two mutts on the Ennore Expressway.
“The two mutts will be moved,” the official said, adding that as far as the fishing harbour is concerned, the work inside can be completed only if the fishermen make way as promised.
“They wanted a platform built into the sea, new shops to sell fish and a place to dry fish following which the facilities have been created. If the fishermen make way, the road on that stretch can be laid in six months,” the official said.
The foundation stone for the project to widen the Tiruvottiyur-Ponneri-Panchetti road, Ennore Expressway, Manali Oil Refinery Road and a portion of the northern segment of the Inner Ring Road was laid in January 2011. The project was slated for opening in June 2013.
Several factors, including the delay in land acquisition, led to the project remaining incomplete.
