Chennai outskirts hope local polls will usher in change

CHENNAI: Residents in southern suburbs of the city are hoping that the announcement of local body elections will force authorities to swiftly address a melange of civic issues in their areas.

Roads

in municipalities such as

Pallavaram

and

Anakaputhur

are in a shoddy state and have not been relaid for more than a year, residents said.

In Anakaputhur, school children are the worst hit as they have to traverse through uneven roads full of potholes. Kanniamman Koil Street and Ramalingam Mutt main road are prime examples of official apathy. “Even the streets behind the

municipality

office are in tatters. Most streets in ward 13 and ward 17 have been in a poor condition for more than a year,” said Anakaputhur resident N Mohan Raj. A petition on these roads was sent to the chief minister’s cell last year, but the appeals have fallen on deaf ears, he said.

In Pallavaram too, localities such as Om Shakti Nagar, English Electric Nagar and Kattabomman Nagar have not seen usable roads for several months, residents said.

“We have escalated our complaints to all levels, but there has been no response. Only a handful of people go about filing petitions. These days, they are just ignored. They (authorities) seem to not be worried even about criticism in the media. We are hoping that at least the announcement of local body elections will bring about a change,” said Muralidharan Kannan, a resident of Kattabomman Nagar. Muralidharan said that in the four years he had stayed in the neighbourhood, there have never been proper roads.

During monsoon, the roads become unmotorable and dangerous. Several motorists have injured themselves due to muddy stretches on roads, residents said.

“Two weeks ago, several streets near the Pallavaram Taluk office were stinking due to poor maintenance of the underground drainage system. Sewage water had flooded on streets and it rained too, making living conditions deplorable,” said a resident of Iswarya Nagar in Pallavaram.

When contacted, an engineer from Anakaputhur municipality said that his team will be issuing tenders for relaying the roads soon.

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