The Hindu             29.11.2013

Unauthorised digging of roads irks residents

S.P. Saravanan

Though crores of rupees were spent by the City Municipal Corporation for repairing and relaying tar-topped roads, the condition of the roads remains pathetic as unauthorised digging of roads in residential areas for laying pipelines and sewer systems remains unchecked.

Though it is mandatory for residents to inform the civic body and pay the charges for road cutting and re-laying, the rules remain on the books as people continue to dig up roads at their convenience and never restore them to the original condition. This leaves formation of open pits and it is the road users who are left to feel the heat, says S. Ramamurthy, a resident of Mittapudur.

The situation is common in many of the residential areas as roads have been dug up for laying pipelines or to connect the house to the sewer system. On Brindavan Road, a pipeline was laid by a private individual and a speed breaker built on it so that no damage is caused to the pipes.

Though it is on one of the busiest roads in the city, it remains unchecked by officials concerned. Apart from revenue loss to the civic body, the deteriorating road condition poses hardship to road users in the areas concerned.

Stagnation of water on roads and unfinished underground sewerage works are giving bumpy rides to motorists and are also leading to accidents. When contacted, Corporation engineers told The Hindu that causing damage to roads would invite punishment and asked residents to get permission from the civic body before having any such work carried out.

The Hindu             29.11.2013

Encroachments removed at Bhavani bus stand

R. Krishnamoorthy

Shops had occupied pavement space

Passengers in Bhavani bus stand are now able to breathe easy, following removal of encroachments in front of shops by the Muncipality.

The bus stand, with the freed space originally designed for pavements in front of about 40 shops, now presents a pleasant sight.

Passengers are able to move freely after the eviction carried out by the Bhavani Municipality authorities on Wednesday. A famous pilgrim town, Bhavani is also a leading business centre for carpets, attracting several hundreds of people every day.

The Sangameswarar Temple in the town is where the Cauvery, Bhavani, and an invisible river Amirtha meet.

For pilgrims thronging the temple, the bus stand was an eye sore. The bus stand used to look crowded on new moon days. These days were when the absence of pavements used to be conspicuously felt, locals said.

Devotees from other States who regularly visit the town in large numbers during December (Margazhi) will henceforth be able to feel comfortable in the bus stand, according to Shankar, a local businessman. He wanted the Municipality to deal with encroachers sternly. The encroached space by each shopkeeper far exceeded the originally allotted space of 10 x 10 feet about 20 years ago, he said. The Municipality carried out the eviction after the Sub-Collector of Gobichettipalayam Chandrasekar Sakhamuri, in his capacity as subdivisional magistrate, conveyed the need for action based on the representations he had received from the public earlier this month.

He had asked the Municipality to ensure that passengers feel convenient inside the bus stand.

Mr. Chandrasekar had also made a similar communication for hassle-free movement of vehicles in the congested town to the State Highways Department.

Officials of the department are now getting the sides of main roads cleared of encroachments.