CHENNAI: Members of a residents' welfare association at Mathur, a village panchayat near Madhavaram, are offering a tough competition to party candidates in this local body polls.

Six members of the TNHB Colony Residents' Consumers Protection and Awareness Association are in the fray for the panchayat election. The residents, frustrated over the malfunctioning of the panchayat over the years, decided to contest in the elections for a corruption-free administration.

Residents said that though they accounted for a high proportion of the total 16,000 voters , none of their demands had been met ever since the colony was set up in 1992. The area lacked basic amenities such as blacktopped roads, drainage system and streetlights.

B. Thirugnanam, association president, who is contesting for the panchayat union councillor post, alleged that funds allotted to various schemes were swindled and works were not executed.

"We obtained the details of developmental works taken up since 2002 through the Right to Information Act. We found that several schemes that were non-starters listed in the report," he said.

He complained that the panchayat ward members did not take up any work at Mathur and obstructed the association's efforts to bring in any facility to the area — be it bus terminus or upgrading the panchayat school.

The candidates are campaigning with a booklet containing the schemes brought to Mathur with the efforts of the association.

The long list of manifesto includes proper garbage clearance, handing over of drinking water supply and sewer disposal to Chennai Metrowater.

Though it is her maiden foray into politics, M.K. Sharmila, a 22-year-old graduate, is confident of contesting for the post of panchayat president against eight candidates. "I have also been affected by the negligence and lack of expertise of ward members. So, I decided to contest without depending on others for developing my area." S. Dinesh Babu, a 22-year-old second year student of Loyola College, plans to divide time judiciously to balance between his studies and work as a councillor.

"I would consult the residents before taking up any developmental work," he said.

The other candidates are R. Surya Gandhi, a homemaker, J. Ramesh and K. Muniyaswamy, an engineer contesting for ward councillor post.

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