A trail of dust settles on RPM Street as a bus passes by. The patchwork executed on the stretch has started wearing off, making riding a nightmare for motorists. A few metres into the narrow lane lie heaps of garbage that has been dumped on a piece of land.
RPM Street (Registrar Periyasamy Mudaliar Street) is plagued by civic woes. Lack of proper road and indiscriminate dumping of garbage, which is often set on fire, has left residents and regular road users in dismay. The street, which is currently a main road connecting Anna Salai and Arni Road at Sankaranpalayam, has not been laid for nearly five years, according to residents and road users.
An autorickshaw driver recalled how the street was dug up immediately after being laid, to take up water pipeline works several years ago. “Since then, it is lying in the same state. There are potholes across the stretch, and the Vellore Corporation takes up only patchwork, which wears off in no time,” he said.
His colleague pinpoints at the dust that covers the stretch. “The street has become a busy stretch, with continuous flow of vehicles, including buses. As a result, vehicles leave behind a trail of dust, making it difficult for residents and road users,” he added.
A shopkeeper on this stretch said that the road has not been laid for at least five years. “The Vellore Corporation fills the potholes with gravel. In the last few years, there has been a heavy movement of vehicles on RPM street after a part of Arni Road (from the junction at TTD information centre to Sankaranpalayam) was made one-way. Buses plying from places such as Tiruvannamalai and Cuddalore to the Fort city travel via RPM street. The condition of the stretch worsens during rains,” he said.
If bad road is a reason for worry, residents face another trouble in the form of indiscriminate dumping of garbage on a piece of land on RPM Street. “Garbage collected from houses is being dumped on a private property on the street for more than four years. The garbage is at times set on fire causing hardship for residents,” said Arul Pari, a resident .
Dr. Pari has raised the issue at various levels starting with the Vellore Corporation, and had also sent petition to the Chief Minister’s Cell. “I also reported this to the National Green Tribunal that sent notices to the Collector. Though officials replied saying that the garbage will be shifted to the appropriate place, somewhere in Bishop David Nagar, nothing has changed till date,” he said.
Another resident noted that even shopkeepers in the surrounding areas dumped the waste here. Dr. Pari said that life was horrible particularly when the garbage was set on fire, and children were at the risk of health hazards.
A senior official of Vellore Corporation said that tenders had been invited to lay a road at an estimated cost of ₹12 lakh. “The work to lay a road here will be taken up soon,” he said. On complaints of garbage being dumped on a land, and set on fire, the official promised to look into it.
