The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Chennai News : Citizens demand early completion of project

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Saturday, Jun 12, 2004

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

Citizens demand early completion of project

By Saptarshi Bhattacharya

CHENNAI, JUNE 11. Citizens in Chromepet have asked the Government to take immediate measures to complete the construction of a flyover across the railway level-crossing which has been pending for four years.

Under the banner of Citizens Forum, the residents submitted a memorandum to the Secretary of the Highways Department and the Commissioner of Land Administration, seeking their intervention for early completion of the project. The issue is caught in litigation over compensation payable for land acquisition.

The Rs. 22-crore flyover, being constructed across the level-crossing near the Madras Institute of Technology (MIT), will connect Chromepet and Grand South Trunk Road to Hasthinapuram, Chitlapakkam, Purushottaman Nagar and Krishna Nagar to the eastern side of the tracks.

"There are at least 20 educational institutions on the eastern side, including MIT and the Vivekananda Vidyalaya school. A few industries too are there," says V. Santhanam, president, Federation of Pallavaram Residents' Welfare Association. "The flyover will help the movement of the 75,000-odd population, who live on the eastern side of the tracks. The traffic at the railway crossing is increasing everyday."

The flyover work began in November 2000 and was slated to end by 2002. While the Southern Railway completed its share of the work, the rest of the construction ran into problems after a group of traders and landowners went to court as they were not happy with the compensation package for the land acquisition. East Coast Constructions, the company entrusted with the contract at a cost of Rs. 9.6 crores, could complete only 50 per cent of the work.

The Highways Department required about three acres of land on the Hasthinapuram side and around four acres on the Pallavaram side for providing service roads and drains. It also required a 10.5-metre strip of land on the eastern side of GST Road and another stretch on the road's western side. Besides, a nearby temple tower (gopuram) obstructed work while an industrial establishment at Hasthinapuram expressed reservations against relocating transformers and other structures.

Following private negotiations in early 2002, the Kancheepuram Collector recommended a schedule of rates, which was turned down by the government. Instead, the government fixed the rates at Rs. 452 per square feet for Zamin Pallavaram and Rs.182 per square feet for Hasthinapuram with a 30 per cent relief package and 12 per cent interest per annum. The rates were given to the landowners last December, who went to court again.

The Citizens Forum filed public interest litigations seeking immediate vacation of stay orders and speedy execution of projects. The Chief Justice of the Madras High Court, B. Subhashan Reddy, ordered the formulation of a Lok Adalat in early April. By April 24, the Lok Adalat submitted its recommendations to the court and the State Government, according to D.S. Sivasamy, president of the Forum.

He said the Highways and Revenue department officials had assured a delegation of the Citizens Forum that the State Government would submit its response to the High Court soon.

The 1,661-metre long flyover is designed to have a six-arm elevated rotary above the GST Road at a height of six metres.

The width of the approach roads will be 6.5 metres and that of the service roads, 5.5 metres. The rotary will have an inner diameter of 30 metres and an outer diameter of 47 metres to channelise traffic. The space below the flyover will be able to accommodate six-lanes of the GST Road.

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