The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Tiruchi News : Gaping trenches harrowing Srirangam, Golden Rock residents

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, May 08, 2004

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Tiruchi

Gaping trenches harrowing Srirangam, Golden Rock residents

By S. Ganesan

TIRUCHI, MAY 7 . If the summer rain that lashed the city for three days has cheered the residents up, it has also left many roads battered.

While the condition of several arterial roads has turned from bad to worse, residents of the Srirangam and Golden Rock zones are the worst hit, what with trenches dug up for the underground drainage scheme.

Road-laying work has been put on hold for the last few months. The Corporation had decided not to take up fresh road works in areas where the scheme is implemented. During the past couple of months, no work has been taken up in other parts of the city too, in view of the Lok Sabha election.

Road-users are now facing a harrowing time, as potholes have turned bigger, and the new ones have popped up. Some of the stretches are notorious for their perennially poor condition. The stretches around the Chathiram bus stand, Salai Road, Shastri Road, Anna Nagar Main Road and Palakkarai Main Road are glaring examples. The accumulation of sand, which makes the roads slush pools during the rain, and dusty thereafter, have added to the woes of motorists.

Residents of Srirangam and Golden Rock face far severe problems, as the trenches dug on the middle of roads for the underground drainage scheme have been left poorly covered. Though the trenches are refilled after pipes are laid, the mud has caved in. Enquiries with the TWAD Board, which executes the project, revealed that it was obligatory on the part of the contractor to blacktop the dug-up portion. However, the work has not been carried out immediately.

The underground drainage work has been taken up simultaneously in several parts of the Srirangam and Golden Rock zones, including Srirangam, Thiruvanaikovil, Melur Road, Duraisamipuram, Kallukuzhi, Sengulam Colony and Sangiliandapuram. So far, pipelines have been laid for a total stretch of over 30 km. Individual notices are served to the residents to be cautious wherever the trenches have been dug. But motorists find it difficult to negotiate these stretches, especially at night; a few accidents have been occurred.

The project, which entails the laying of sewer lines for a distance of 182 km and construction of 6,223 manholes, is scheduled for completion by the end of 2005. Residents are hoping that the Corporation and the TWAD Board will ensure that the blacking-topping work is taken up as soon as the pipelines are laid.

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