In the part urban, part rural constituency that Thondamuthur is, Municipal Administration Minister S.P. Velumani is aiming for a hat-trick. If he wins, it will be his fourth time as a legislator — he won in the 2006 election from the then Perur constituency.
This time, he is pitted against DMK environment wing secretary Karthikeya Sivasenapathy, hailing from Kangayam in the neighbouring district of Tiruppur.
The constituency has about one-third urban areas — 14 wards of the Coimbatore Corporation in the west, central and south zones, eight village panchayats and seven town panchayats in the Perur taluk.
In the Corporation limits, the constituency covers the well developed R.S. Puram and such thickly populated areas as Selvapuram, Ukkadam, Karumbukkadai and Kuniamuthur, which are less developed.
The rural part includes Boluvampatti, Devarayapuram, Vellaimalaipattinam, Narasipuram, Dhaliyur, Alandurai and Perur.
In the urban areas, the residents’ foremost demands include water supply, a solution to traffic congestion and meaningful development of waterbodies taken up for rejuvenation under the Smart Cities Mission.
R. Shantakumar, a resident of Ward 23, says that though the Coimbatore Corporation, under the Municipal Administration Department, has visually improved D.B. Road under the Smart Cities Mission, more should be done; R.S. Puram needs a comprehensive traffic improvement plan.
There has been very little improvement in the drinking water supply, though the Corporation implemented the much-touted 24x7 drinking water distribution improvement project in the ward. “There had been some improvement in protecting the waterbodies in the last few years. But of what use would the lake rejuvenation project be without the efforts to treat the sewage flowing into the tank. The Corporation seemed to have given little thought to it,” Mr. Shantakumar says.
The complaint about water supply echoes across wards in Selvapuram, Telugupalayam and Ukkadam.
In the rural part, voters credit Mr. Velumani with the establishment of a government arts and science college at Thondamuthur. Besides that, there is little to talk about, especially on the agriculture front, alleges former MLA from the area M.N. Kandasamy.
Workers move out
Farmers in Thondamuthur and its neighbourhood cultivate mostly vegetables, but workers are keen on going to the city for better wages. And there is no cold storage for perishable goods.
In the last 10 years, Mr. Velumani has also failed at industrialisation, including in the food processing sector, Mr. Kandasamy says.
P.R. Sundarasamy, a farmers’ union leader from Thondamuthur, wants the surplus water from the Noyyal channelled into the 40-plus ponds, which are desilted and kept ready.
Groundwater table
This, along with the construction of check-dams across the river, will help to recharge the groundwater table, which has dipped, forcing the farmers to buy water. He calls for a comprehensive solution to the human-animal conflict and for measures to protect crops from elephants and boars.
S. Shajahan of Makkal Needhi Maiam and S.R. Sathishkumar of the AMMK are among the other candidates.
With a powerful politician in Mr. Velumani, a strong opponent in Mr. Sivasenapathy and Mr. Shajahan and Mr. Sathishkumar promising change, it remains to be seen whose arguments will find favour with the voters.
