Urban News

The Deccan Chronicle  30.09.2010

Sept. 29: The government has ordered the expansion of areas under the corporations of Coimbatore, Madurai, Tiruchy and Vellore, in a major policy decision that reflects the rapid urbanisation of areas surrounding these major cities.

The government issued orders to merge some of the thickly populated villages and town panchayats just outside the existing limits of these corporations with the civic bodies in the first move of the kind in nearly 30 years. The expansion will give a major infrastructural boost to local bodies that are merged with the corporations.

The jurisdiction of Coimbatore city will expand to 265.36 sq. km from the existing 105.80 sq. km while Madurai city limits will swell to 147.99 sq. km from 51.82 sq. km. The decision will also expand the area of Tiruchy corporation to 167.23 sq. km from 146.90 sq. km while Vellore will grow from 11.65 sq. km to 87.92 sq. km.

According to K. Ashok Vardhan Shetty, principal secretary, municipal administration and water supply department, the decision will help people get better amenities. Existing representatives, whether municipal chairmen or village panchayat presidents, will continue in their posts till their term is over.

“The commissioner of municipal administration has been asked to appoint special officers to these corporations to redraw the boundaries of wards and zones,” Mr Shetty said in the order.

Three municipalities, Kurichi, Kuniamuthur and Kavundampalayam, seven town panchayats, Saravanampatty, Kalapatty, Vellalur, Vadavalli, Thudiyalur, Veerkeralam and Perur, and Chinniyampalayam and Vilankurichi village panchayats have been merged with Coimbatore city.

As many as 17 local bodies including Anaiyur, Avaniyapuram and Thirumangalam municipalities and Harvipatty, Thirunagar and Vilankudi town panchayats have been included in Madurai corporation. In Tiruchy, Tiruverumbur town panchayat, Ellakudi, Pappakurichi, Alathur and Melakarkandarkottai villages were brought into the city’s civic body limits.