Work on widening the congested Kesavadasapuram-Nalanchira stretch of M.C. Road into four lanes will be inaugurated by Chief Minister V.S. Achuthanandan on Wednesday.
The road is being widened at an estimated cost of Rs.21 crore by the Public Works Department. The approval for the work has been given by the government and the tender formalities have been completed, Minister for Law and Parliamentary Affairs M. Vijayakumar said.
Last year, the government had allocated Rs.8 crore to acquire land for widening the stretch.
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The road beyond Nalanchira has already been widened and made into a four-lane stretch with a median and junction improvements have been made at Mannanthala. The development of the remaining stretch of M.C. Road till Kottarakara has been taken up under the World Bank-aided Kerala State Transport Project.
The development of the Kesavadasapuram-Nalanchira stretch has been a long-pending demand of the people as it is the entry point to the city from M.C. Road. Traffic snarls are a regular feature here during peak hours. The educational institutions on the stretch, the expansion of the city and the shifting of the Collectorate from Vanchiyoor to the Civil Station at Kudappannakkunnu have compounded the problems of motorists.
Mr. Achuthanandan will inaugurate the road widening work at a function at Nalanchira Kurisadi junction at 5 p.m. on Wednesday.
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Mr. Vijayakumar, who represents Thiruvananthapuram North, will preside over the function. Minister for Food and Civil Supplies C. Divakaran; Minister for Water Resources N.K. Premachandran; Mayor C. Jayan Babu; Shashi Tharoor, MP; and Deputy Leader of the Opposition G. Karthikeyan will attend.