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Small and cute, despite hitches

Photo: K. Ganesan

unruffled It’s cool and green everywhere

Perhaps it is one of the rarest small and cute residential areas of the city that still retains its greenery. And, where the lucky residents wake up early to sounds of nature’s orchestra that has birds and breeze as its members.

The big yellow-black sign board of “Co-optex Colony” on the Theni Road invariably reminds passers-by about the flapping colourful butterfly, the insignia of the co-optex showrooms.Like the diverse patterns on the brightly coloured wings, the erratic yet graceful flight makes watching butterflies a popular hobby, similarly with all inconveniences and shortcomings, having a house in the Co-optex Colony make for the owner’s pride.

“As soon as you enter the road from the hustle-bustle of the main road, you will feel the calm and serenity of the place,” vouches S.Anu Revathi, a resident.

The L-shaped little colony has just 40 plots of which the promoters have handed over five plots for establishing parks and playground that act as a breathing space for the area in an era of concretization.

“In 1985, it was just a bushy and slushy area. We just carried the building materials as there were no provisions for lorry to enter the area,” says S.M. Sundaram, the first resident of the area. Effective measures taken by the association, established in 1989, have enhanced the look of the area. This includes a 30-feet wide road.

As the name suggests, the area was promoted for the co-optex employees by the then Regional Manager, K. Sarangapani.

Now, only three co-optex employees stay there with their families.“Earlier, it was announced as an industrial area. After a long battle of eight years waged by my father Sarangapani, the layout was passed in 1991,” fondly remembers Hemvathy.

She says that though the area is called Co-optex Colony the corporation authorities give receipts either as Doak Nagar extension or Virattipathu. The area presents a world of calmness that is slowly vanishing from many residential areas with too much of commercialisation in the garb of development.

“But here we are able to lead a happy and peaceful life with all little hitches,” she adds.

The residents are so meticulous that the houses on the right side are allowed to grow only shrubs as they would otherwise disrupt the electric posts, while houses on the left side are allowed to grow big trees that contribute to the green-look of the area.

The Co-optex Colony Residents Welfare Association, which is an unregistered society, struggles to meet the residents’ expectations as there is lack of patronage from the Corporation authorities, says P. Natarajan, vice-president of the association.

“Our major concern is encroachment. We want the authorities to clear off the area so that the road regains its original size. We also want to re-lay the road that has is now full of potholes due to the work for an underground drainage system which is still inoperative,” he says.

The association has lofty ideas such as arranging an outing for the families, establishing a pucca park and playground for children and arranging entertainment and socially-active programmes in the colony. “Everything is in the pipeline,” says K.Srinivasan, treasurer.

“We have problems that need to be addressed immediately such as erecting street lights, establishing a proper park in the earmarked area that would enable our children to enjoy their evenings,” he says.

“We made our own fence and planted around 20 saplings but the Corporation authorities have destroyed them and now they are using it as a dumping yard for garbage desilt that kills the whole atmosphere which we want to want to maintain,” says Mr. Natarajan.

The area is flocked by upper middle class people. As the area has feel-good atmosphere and good ground water, the residents are eager to solve all problems with the support of authorities.

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