CHENNAI: Residents of Veppampattu and Perumalpattu panchayats in Tiruvallur risk their lives every day due to a delay in the construction of a rail overbridge (ROB) near Veppampattu railway station. In the absence of the ROB and a subway, commuters are forced to cross the railway tracks to reach the other side.
The construction of a ROB across Veppampattu station began in 2010, but construction stopped midway due to land acquisition issues.
The alternate option for commuters is to use a level-crossing gate around 1.5 km away to reach the railway station. “The level crossing remains closed most of the time and even ambulances get stuck there,” said Jayaraman, a resident of Perumalpattu.
The court cases against the land acquisition were dismissed by the Madras High Court in 2021 and it is unclear what is stopping work from resuming, said residents. “Earlier officials used to cite pending cases, but now there is no concrete response on the progress of the work,” said Vinoth S, a resident of Veppampattu.
Meanwhile, the railways had allocated Rs 1.54 crore for the subway work and so far Rs 38 lakh has been spent on it. In response to an RTI query, the railways said work was halted due to land acquisition issues and a shortage of funds. “Crossing the railway tracks poses a huge risk and the area is prone to accidents. We hope to resume work once funds are approved,” the official added. Sources from the highway department told TNIE, “Land acquisition process for the ROB is underway. Once it is over, tenders will be floated.”