More than three months have passed since Chief Minister Jayalalithaa laid the foundation stone for the government medical college in Karur, but confusion prevails over the selection of land.
When she laid the foundation stone through video conference in the first week of March, it was announced that the college would come up at Sanapiratti on 30.27 acres of land belonging to the Karur Municipality at an estimate of Rs. 229.46 crore.
A few days prior to the function, the Karur Municipality passed a resolution to facilitate the transfer of land to the Director of Medical Education.
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The Public Works Department awarded the tender for taking up the construction work immediately.
Before choosing the Sanapiratti site, the State government had issued an order for constructing the medical college on 25 acres of land donated by a person at Kuppuchipalayam near Vangal, which was about 10 km from Karur.
The land was chosen when V. Senthil Balaji was in power as Transport Minister.
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However, the decision was changed immediately after he was dropped from the State Cabinet and stripped off the post of Karur district secretary of the AIADMK. It was reasoned that Kuppuchipalayam site was far away from Karur and located in a remote area. The State government selected the Sanapiratti site, which is located in the town limits.
But work has not started until now as the PWD was yet to receive the order for taking possession of the site apparently because of litigation pending before the Madras High Court Bench.
It is said that a “group of persons”, who demanded the establishment of the medical college at Kuppuchipalayam, has been contending that the site at Sanapiratti was insufficient for future expansion of the college.
Meanwhile, sources told The Hindu that senior Health Department officials had instructed their colleagues to look for an alternative site. It had been conveyed to the revenue officials of the district as well. However, there has been no clarity on the status of Sanapiratti site.
Pointing out that the medical college in Karur was announced by Chief Minister in the Assembly in 2012, S. Jothimani, spokesperson of TNCC, said that it was time to find a suitable location. The interest of real estate groups and politicians should not be allowed to influence the selection of medical college site, she said.