COIMBATORE: Officers from the Coimbatore City Municipal Corporation (CCMC) and the special projects wing of State Highways Department inspected the Avinashi Road on Monday for installing pipeline for the 24x7 water supply project. The inspection was held after highways department recently turned down CCMC’s request to dig up the road as 70% of road laying work has been completed.
Construction of the Rs 1,621.30 crore Avinashi Road Elevated Expressway, which began in December 2020, is expected to be completed by April this year. With nearly 70% of road laying work completed, the civic body and Suez firm officials had sought permission from highways department to dig up the road for installing pipelines for the 24x7 water supply project.
A senior official from the special projects wing of the state highways department, Coimbatore division, told TNIE, “We are racing against time to complete the project by March. Nearly 70% of the road has been paved. At this point, the civic body wants to dig the road which is unacceptable. We can’t permit them. We’ve told them to dig up the stretch where a new road has not been paved yet.”
The officials suggested that CCMC can use the utility chamber built on both sides of the road to install the pipes as they are large enough to accommodate them. On Monday, CCMC and highways officials held a joint inspection regarding this.
When inquired about it, CCMC commissioner M Sivaguru Prabakaran told TNIE, “Over a year ago, we had sent a letter to the highways department requesting permission for the pipeline installation work. However, they did not take any action. Pipelines need to be installed for around seven kilometres on the stretch. We shall be installing the pipelines underground in the where the highways department is yet to build a road. In the stretch where road has been built, we’ve decided to install the pipes in chambers on the road sides.”