Corporation road not re-laid for seven years

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A patch of prime land, which could serve as a welcome link to the congested East Coast Road at Tiruvanmiyur lies in disuse even three years after it was cleared of encroachments.

Locals, meanwhile, are refusing to use the corporation road as it has not been re-laid for the past seven years. The dingy, dark road that lies adjacent to a popular mosque (Masjid Noor) is now a hub of anti-socials.

Mr Syed Sulaiman, president, Masjid Noor said, “Five years ago, a good portion of the corporation road was encroached upon and a building was constructed. After several petitions to the then corporation commissioner and senior police officers, the building was demolished. But much to our dismay the corporation has been delaying laying of the road for the past five years.”

“Whenever petitions are forwarded to the top brass of the corporation, there is some respite but the local field engineers fail to complete the task of upgrading the road.

There is no tar topping for years and not even a single streetlight has been installed. Except for the postman, no one in the area is aware that such a road exists,” said Mr R. Noorullah, a local resident.

According to local corporation councillor K. Usha Kumar, Metro Water and the corporation are passing the buck to each other and delaying road relaying works.

Sewer water got mixed with drinking water in a particular stretch and Metro Water authorities have been unable to detect the spot and they have dug up all the interior roads delaying the road repairs, she added.

When contacted, Chennai corporation commissioner D. Karthikeyan told this newspaper that he would look into the issue and assured necessary infrastructure for the road at the earliest.