Minister for Public Works Department and Highways E.V. Velu, accompanied by Minister for Commercial Taxes and Registration P. Moorthy, on Sunday inspected the land at Keelakarai near Alanganallur where a grand arena to host jallikattu, the bull taming sport, will come up.
Addressing mediapersons, Mr. Velu said the land spanning 66 acre, owned by the government at the foothills of Vaithumalai at Keelakarai, had been chosen for constructing the arena. Steps would be taken to obtain permission to begin the work soon. In the first phase, 16 acres would be levelled, soil tests and land surveys would be conducted and a compound wall would be erected. “An estimation will be drafted soon and submitted for approval. Tenders will be floated soon after,” said Mr. Velu.
A lake situated within the 66 acres would be beautified without disturbing its natural sanctity, as part of the project, he added. The Minister also noted that an approach road would be laid simultaneously.
The construction works would be expedited and the arena would be put to use before 2024 as per Chief Minister’s directions, he noted.
When asked about the steps taken to restore many damaged bridges surrounding Vadipatti and Alanganallur that connect small villages, Mr. Velu said that surveys had been taken by the department as well as the district administration. “Bridges will be renovated and reconstructed wherever necessary,” he said.
Under Chief Minister’s road development programme, 2,000 km of panchayat and panchayat union roads would be upgraded in the first phase.
Collector S. Aneesh Sekhar, Sholavandan MLA A. Venkatesan, District Revenue Officer Sakthivel and other government officials were present during the inspection.
