Nothing annoys residents more than government projects remaining idle after completion. The gap between requirements of people and what is provided by local bodies is always huge. The State, after a lot of thought approves cash-strapped urban local bodies to go ahead with the commissioning of new projects or upgradation. K Manikandan looks at two cases of prolonged delays
It was in 2009 that the Madambakkam town panchayat decided to construct a new marriage hall as the existing one at Pathuvanchery was not spacious enough and it could host only small events. The same year, foundation stone for the marriage hall was laid and work was completed two years later at an estimated cost of Rs 1 crore and this included Rs 40 lakh from the Lok Sabha.
It is among the finest marriage halls built by any local body in the suburbs and it boasted plenty of open space, especially parking space. Though the town panchayat has installed a board announcing the charges — Rs 50,000 as daily rent, Rs 3,000 as cleaning charges and Rs 25,000 as deposit — not a single marriage has been solemnised at the hall though it has been more than five years since completion.
“This is a project for which the foundation was laid long ago. So far, it has not been commissioned only because there is a difference between who is in the local administration and in the State government,” said Mallika Mohan, former chairperson, Madambakkam town panchayat.
“We considered ourselves very lucky as it was a boon for residents of not just Madambakkam, but also residents of Tambaram municipality, Agaramthen village panchayat and other surrounding localities.
“However, we are really upset that the town panchayat is yet to commission such a wonderful facility,” said an elderly resident and activist of ward No. 10 of Madambakkam and who requested anonymity.
In an attempt to decongest the stretch of the Grand Southern Trunk Road in Pallavaram owing to the increasing flow of vehicles, the Pallavaram municipality decided to create bus shelters so that the Metropolitan Transport Corporation buses could pick up passengers at dedicated bays instead of halting and picking up passengers on the carriageway of this National Highway.
Initially, Rs 30 lakh was spent on creating a proper bus shelter. Further an additional Rs 20 lakh was spent after officials decided to carry out further improvement works so that MTC buses enter the bus bay. Though the combined works were completed in 2010, it is yet to become functional so far.
As the shelters and bus bay have not been used, MTC services continue to halt on the carriageway. With the grade separator under construction a few hundred metres away from the bus stand, vehicles from Guindy slow down, affecting the free flow of traffic all the way up to the road overbridge at the GST Road-Pallavaram Thoraipakkam radial road intersection, Pallavaram residents and traders said. They said that if the bus bay was made operational, it would bring in a much needed relief on the arterial road.
As the MTC buses were not using the shelter, the pavements and the bay were taken over by mobile shops. Traders said a whopping Rs 50 lakh of the taxpayers money should not go waste and appealed to the Pallavaram Municipality to ensure that the shelter is made operational. Officials have promised a positive development at the earliest.