Chennai: Police officers attached to Pallavaram limit are now shuttling between the local municipal offices and the state highways department pleading with the government officials to speed up the relaying of the four-km Pallavaram Dargah road, an arterial road that connects three municipal areas with GST road.
The police is now caught between the public and the local body authorities over the inordinate delay in laying the road for the past three years.
About 400 residents on Friday blocked traffic, demanding the municipal engineers to visit the spot and explain why the four-km road is not re-laid. When the police pacified the agitators not to block the road, the public demanded police to negotiate between them and the civic authorities, giving a one-month ultimatum.
"Lack of coordination between the state highways and the Pallavaram municipality has delayed the construction of a state highway connecting GST road for three years. Upset over the delay the residents of Pallavaram had planned a series of protests against state authorities", said Union carbide colony residents' welfare association general secretary N. Senthil Kumar.
Meanwhile, residents on Friday decided to intensify their protest if there were no visible civil works by next week.
“If the road is not re-laid within this month, as many as 500 people are ready to block the traffic along the GST road by next month. On Friday, we withdrew the protest as the police assured that the engineers have agreed to relay the road”, said M. Krishnamurthy, convener, Residents Welfare Association.
