As 2018 comes to an end, a look back at the year shows that it had been a reasonably better year for Madurai district, in implementation of infrastructure projects and on the agriculture front.
The year started on an upbeat mood with jallikattu at Avaniapuram, Alanganallur and Palamedu happening peacefully with reduced number of injuries after the historic protests against the ban of the sport in 2017. It was this year that Chief Minister Edappadi K. Palaniswami inaugurated the traditional sport for the first time at Alanganallur.
Two weeks later, the district was shaken by a fire incident at the iconic Meenakshi Sundareswarar Temple, one of the worst in recent memory, in which Veera Vasantharayar Mandapam suffered heavy damage. The incident resulted in eviction of shops located inside the temple. Special teams were formed for restoration work.
On the infrastructure front, the district made progress, albeit delays and concerns over implementation of certain projects.
The jubilant announcement came in the middle of the year with the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare, after prolonged delay and litigations, choosing Madurai as the location for setting up the All India Institute of Medical Sciences Hospital. With the Union Cabinet approving the project by the end of the year, work has begun to gain momentum.
The long-pending project to shift the fruit market from the congested Simmakkal area to Mattuthavani became a reality with the inauguration of the Smart Fruit Market. The city received the State government’s approval for a new project to directly bring water from Mullaperiyar dam.
Madurai city also witnessed initiation of a slew of other new infrastructure projects, including the commencement of construction of a flyover at Kalavasal junction, upgrade of Periyar bus stand and the Vaigai river front under the Smart Cities project, and a four-lane road to connect Mattuthavani and Koodal Nagar. The widening of Uthangudi-Kappalur stretch of Ring Road, which began earlier this year, is progressing at a slower pace.
Apart from the road projects of the State government, the National Highways Authority of India has also commenced work on at least two big projects in the district – widening of Natham Road that will include an elevated highway stretch and a greenfield Outer Ring Road connecting Dindigul and Tiruchi highways.
Both the projects faced opposition, mainly from farmers, over acquisition of land and loss of livelihood and from activists for felling of trees. While the construction of Natham Road project has commenced despite opposition, the execution of Outer Ring Road has been stayed by the Madurai Bench of Madras High Court following petitions by affected landholders. The latter has particularly received criticism for its potential impact on the fertile double-crop region in the district.
Agriculture
Though annual rainfall was below average, 2018 turned out to be a bountiful year for agriculture, particularly after the last couple of years proved to be difficult for farmers. This was made possible due to rainfall received in catchment areas of Vaigai and Mullaperiyar dams. After several years, Vaigai dam reached its full capacity and Madurai witnessed continuous flow of water in the river for a couple of weeks after a decade. Though a large number of tanks in the district received water, there was criticism regarding inefficient maintenance of waterbodies that resulted in reduced storage capacity.
Importantly, the dream project of the people of Usilampatti region, 58-village irrigation canal, was constructed after 20 years and water was released on a trial basis. Though the trial run faced challenges with breaches of bunds in many places, the project brought joy to people of the water-starved region.
Cyclone Gaja did leave its mark in Madurai with farm lands in peripheral areas near Melur and Vadipatti witnessing moderate damage.
Road safety
The district made a significant improvement on road safety front with deaths due to road accidents coming down considerably in both city and district police limits. Police attributed this to a variety of measures, particularly implementation of speed control measures and stringent enforcement of rules.
