The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Coimbatore News : Hard times for a growing township

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Wednesday, Apr 13, 2005

Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Coimbatore

Hard times for a growing township

By K.V. Prasad

COIMBATORE, APRIL 12. The road that leads to the Special Panchayat of Vilankurichi speaks volumes of the plight of the residents even before one reaches this developing town to know of its problems.

Full of potholes and also slush created by rain on Wednesday, the Vilankurichi Road effectively brings out the ordeal of a number of residential layouts that witness rapid development but have no alternative route to reach the city.

Four km north of the emerging information technology corridor at Hope College junction, residents of Cheran Maanagar curse their luck while coping with bad roads. "The roads in Cheran Maanagar are a mess, says Jaya Neil, a resident. "So, we go through Kumudam Nagar to reach the main road, which is worse."

Relaid last year

Residents of both the areas say that the main road was re-laid late last year but the surface has disintegrated in the last two months, leaving large potholes that cause accidents.

The first major hurdle is the railway gate located less than a km from Avanashi Road. Frequent rail traffic leads to the gates being closed nearly 50 times a day. This leaves the residents stranded, especially during peak hours.

An overbridge to eliminate this problem has been proposed. While works on similar projects are on at two other places in the city, Vilankurichi Road remains jinxed.

A number of layouts beyond the railway crossing are favourite housing destinations. But bottlenecks remain in the form of sluggish development. A resident of Vilankurichi says it is still a village in mindset though it is a fast developing township. Three generations of her family have lived here but did not see much development over the last 40-50 years.

According to residents, solution is provided to certain specific problems when individuals approach the local body. But overall development remains elusive.

Response to complaints of poor civic amenities is limited to an immediate assurance to public of a solution. But, very few assurances translate into action. Residents say the panchayat is "affectionate" to them but "not effective."

But, the panchayat has also told them that Rs. 30 lakhs will be spent on improving all the roads.

Waste management employing women's self-help groups members got derailed as it did not get public patronage, some residents point out. Garbage is dumped along the Vilankurichi Road but there are fresh efforts at reviving waste management.

Residents of Bharathi Nagar, Mahalakshmi Garden and Mounasamy Nagar complain that Pilloor water, which is available throughout the year unlike Siruvani, is supplied only once in eight days.

Though it is a two-month old problem, its occurrence during summer causes concern. Cheran Maanagar and Kumudam Nagar, however, do not have such a complaint. Water is supplied on alternate days.

Ms. Neil says the worst problem is of stray dogs. They prowl the streets past dusk and children going for evening tuitions dread to step out of home.

Despite complaints, solution remains elusive.

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