The Hindu : Roadwork promises relief for Nanganallur residents

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Friday, May 09, 2003

Southern States

Southern States - Tamil Nadu-Chennai

Roadwork promises relief for Nanganallur residents

By R. Sujatha

CHENNAI MAY 8 . Roadwork has begun on the 1st and the 4th main roads in Nanganallur raising hopes among residents that there will be more relief on the way. Of the 759 roads in the area, which has 25,000 houses including flats, tenders have been called for laying of 310 roads, according to the Alandur municipality officials.

The work orders will be issued by May-end and in two months the roads would be ready for use. All arterial roads will be re-laid and preference will be given to heavily-populated areas.

The municipality remitted Rs. 85 lakhs to the Highways authority for laying roads in 2001-2002, but the work was shelved because of the sewerage project. The municipality expects deposits from 8, 000 people who are yet to pay for the sewerage connection. This will generate Rs. 4 crores, which will be in addition to the loans from the TN Urban Finance and Infrastructure Development Corporation (TUFIDCO) and the TN Urban Infrastructure Financial Services Limited (TNUIFSL).

The deposit money will be used to lay roads and clean the Adambakkam tank. Currently the water used for washing and cleaning in homes flows into the storm water drains and is then drained into the tank, polluting it, said the sources.

Residents, however, may not have `quality' roads as they could cave in. The officials are worried that it might take at least three monsoons for the soil beneath the roads to return to its original shape. The deep trenches dug for laying sewerage pipes have been covered, but new roads would cave in as the earth continues to firm up.

The municipality has proposed to cut off septic tank connections to those who have not paid the deposits for the sewerage project. So far, 17,000 residents have paid for the connections. While 10,000 people paid Rs. 5,000, the others paid Rs. 6,000. House connections are pending for those who are yet to pay Rs. 1,000. Municipal authorities say the project was not delayed because of the defaulters.

Meanwhile, work on widening of the M.K.N. Road is progressing slowly because of encroachments along the road edges, which has already taken away much of the carriageway. A Highways authority source says the encroachers would vacate in a week's time. M.K.N. Road leads to the Alandur MTC bus terminus.

Municipality officials point out that buses could be run to interior Nanganallur through the Thillai Ganga Nagar subway if two constables were posted to regulate traffic along the narrow stretch leading to the subway from the M.K.N. Road.

Officials said the narrow roads could be made one-way and buses could be run through the subway via 22nd Street and 3rd Main Road of Nanganallur to MGR Road and then to the SBI colony and the Nanganallur terminus.

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