The Hindu 02.12.2010
A clean-up act, here & now
D. Radhakrishnan
| Stern action against those who deface Charing Cross |
For clean environs:Municipal workers sprucing up Charing Cross in Udhagamandalam on Wednesday.
Udhagamandalam: With Charing Cross, a hub on the threshold of this popular holiday destination wearing a shabby look for years together because of various factors, the civic administration swung into action on Wednesday and launched a mass cleaning campaign.
Torrential rains and bitter chillness notwithstanding about 200 employees of the municipality participated in the ‘Operation Facelift.'
Many people told The Hindu that the effort was a ‘better-late-than-never initiative.' They expressed the hope that it would continue till all the civic problems confronting the busy and important area are addressed.
For long, Charing Cross had been the pride of this hill station, they said adding that of late it has been making visitors and local residents wince in disgust.
Among the reasons were its run down appearance, increasing congestion and stench from clogged drains.
Stating that over the decades, Charing Cross had been considered to be the show piece of this hill station, they said that the Adam Memorial Fountain, the most prominent feature of the area is the best known land mark of the town and a very popular backdrop for photographs and videos.
Recalling that until recently, the long-standing practice was to spruce up Charing Cross just before the season, some of the traders in the area said that such an effort has been conspicuous by its absence over the last about one decade. They expressed the hope that the present initiative would lead to the revival of the practice.
A major contributory factor for Charing Cross wearing an unpleasant look was the poor maintenance of a municipal shopping complex which had come up a couple of decades ago. It was now an eye sore and parts of it are a serious health hazard.
T. Vijayan, a businessman at Charing Cross said that the efforts of the authorities concerned should be directed towards making the area presentable to tourists and comfortable for local residents.
The Commissioner in-charge, B. Ramoorthy, promised that there would be no let-up in the efforts to beautify Charing Cross and added that steps would be taken to improve the shopping complex. Erring traders in the complex would be pulled up. Mass cleaning campaigns would be organised every Wednesday at different parts of the town. Municipal Health Officer P.G. Bhanumathy said that action would be taken against those aggravating civic problems.
