Chalappuram Raksha Samithi warns civic body of stir

Seeks immediate repair and widening of Chalappuram-Mankavu road

Motorists and pedestrians are finding it difficult to negotiate the potholed Chalappuram-Mankavu road in the city. Photo: K. Ragesh

The people of Chalappuram in the city are on the verge of an agitation over the deplorable condition of roads.

A meeting of the Chalappuram Raksha Samithi held here on Monday called upon the city Corporation to repair the roads immediately. Else, the samithi would resort to an intense protest, office-bearers said.

The Chalappuram-Mankavu road was a main road which connected the region to other parts of the city. The Public Works Department (PWD) had acquired land to widen it. The residents of the region had been waiting for the widening.

The repair of the road had been put off citing ‘imminent widening.’ Huge potholes had made the road un-motorable and traffic jams were frequent, residents said.

Many residents had voluntarily given their land for widening. “The minimum we seek is proper repair. Our vehicles fall into the potholes and need expensive repairs very often. It is more dangerous for two-wheeler riders,” samithi president Padiyeri Gopalakrishnan said. The P.V. Swami road that connects the Kallayi road to the Chalappuram Post Office, the Tali-Chalappuram Cross road, the Puthiyapalam-Muriyad- East Kallayi road, and the East Kallayi Cross Road are the other roads in the region were also in a deplorable condition, sources said.

Mr. Gopalakrishnan said they had submitted many petitions to the Corporation seeking repair of these roads. No action had been taken, he said.

The monsoon had set in and motorists and pedestrians were untold hardships negotiating the stretch, he said. The samithi would wait till July 15 before resorting to a stir, he added.