Tamil Nadu - Coimbatore   

Central intervention sought to re-lay highway

Special Correspondent

MLA lists out works to improve the condition of the stretch

COIMBATORE: With the condition of the Mettupalayam Road (a stretch of the National Highway 67) deteriorating by the day, immediate intervention of the Centre has been sought to re-lay the road and prevent loss of lives on this busy stretch that leads to the hill station of Udhagamandalam. (The highway connects Nagapattinam with Mysore via Gudalur.)

Congress Legislature Party leader and Thondamuthur MLA S.R. Balasubramoniyan has written a letter to Union Minister for Shipping and Transport T.R. Baalu for steps to have the road re-laid soon.

The MLA said in the letter that the stretch from Avinashilingam University in the city and Periyanaickenpalayam (20 km north of the city) was in a very bad shape and the road had not been re-laid for many years.

A number of accidents had occurred recently on the road that was full of potholes and had heavy traffic. Water logging also held up traffic. Therefore, the road had to be re-laid at the earliest, the letter appealed.

Mr. Balasubramoniyan listed out three major works to improve the condition of the stretch.

They were: raising the water logged area (over a stretch of 2.8 km) at Rs. 42.18 lakhs, special repairs to the road at Rs. 2.74 crores and drainage at Rs. 62.40 lakhs.

The MLA said in the letter that these works could not be held up and that they should be taken up immediately to ensure smooth flow of traffic.

Mr. Balasubramoniyan told The Hindu that making the road a four-lane stretch would take time but in the meanwhile these listed works should not be delayed. He met Highways officials on Wednesday to press for speedy action and visited the badly affected stretches of the road.

Patchworks to be done

Quoting the officials, he said patchworks to close potholes would be taken up immediately and that he would visit New Delhi next week to meet Mr. Baalu to apprise him of the road's condition and the threat it posed to the public.

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