CHENNAI: In a major embarrassment to Tambaram municipality, state highways has temporarily suspended permission given to the civic body to lay underground sewage pipelines along the arterial Tambaram-Mudichur-Padappai road.
The move by highways was taken considering fatal accidents, which increased due to the slow pace of construction work eating into the existing road space.
Officials from municipality had earlier acquired permission from the state highways to lay an underground drainage line running for 2.5 km, in the first week of June this year and assured the work would be finished in a month. However, according to informed sources, officials were only able to finish 30 per cent of the work despite working on the stretch for 47 days. Sources further said that only 700 metres have been dug starting from GSI hospital to Lakshmipuram, leaving the entire stretch in a mess.
The slow pace of work and incomplete pipeline made life difficult for local residents of Krishna Nagar, Old Perungalathur, Parvathy Nagar, Mudichur, Madimangalam and Padappai. Adding to the woes, even motorists traveling across the arterial GST Road from Tambaram to Perungalathur diverting to this road are struck in traffic.
State highways told municipality that they had received a lot of complaints from the motorists and they would be granted permission to dig further only after they finish the work and roads are laid along the 700-metre stretch and dig no further.
When questioned, a top official from Tambaram municipality attributed the reason for the delay to be presence of huge rocks. “We use detonators to blast rocks and the excavation work happens only in the night. We will finish the work in another 30 days,” he said.
However, the assistant engineer of state highways denies that there are any major difficulties and said the reason of delay is that they are not using latest equipment. “Advanced instruments would dig 2.5 km stretch within five days. We have told the municipality to finish the work prior to monsoon.”
