In what could be a novel way to address the grievances of people, Villivakkam constituency MLA J C D Prabhakar on Monday brought officials from various departments under one roof in SIDCO Nagar, where residents poured out their woes.
The meeting had men and women from different walks of lives trying to garner the attention of the MLA and officials. There were old men with petitions complaining about water supply or being visited by snakes from a nearby weeded plot or a playground suddenly going ‘missing’ from the area plan.
There were also arguments but they were in good spirit as the MLA tried to pacify the residents and vowed to look into their problems.
The focus was more on the lack of water supply, leaking drainages and laying of new sewage lines.
“The new sewage pipelines would soon be laid in the area,” assured Prabhakar as residents wanted speedy implementation of the project.
Prabhakar said that he wants to make Villivakkam a model constituency. “We will soon have an indoor stadium in the constituency and the sodium bulbs will be replaced by LED bulbs,” he said while receiving petitions from the residents of wards 94, 95 and 99.
He also has plans for setting up a hospital in the constituency besides converting the Open Space Rservation areas as parks and pathways.
A group of women from the area told the MLA that they did not receive any water supply. Immediately, the query was transferred to Metro Water Executive Engineer Jayaraman who assured them that he would look into the issue. “The problem will be addressed in seven days,” the MLA told the women and added that they could approach him again if it was delayed further.
A couple of senior citizens highlighted how a playground vanished from the master plan of the city. “The officials refused to give us the original plan. We got it with great difficulty. Now it is before the court,” they said.
The constituency has also been rocked by issues like lack of tar road or parks besides issues like water and sanitation. People living in areas such as EPF quarters have been complaining of snakes visiting them as the corporation has not cleared the nearby vegetation.
Prabhakar also brought to light that an amount of `9.46 lakh was sanctioned for the park but it was never built. The corporation officials assured that it will be ready in the next one month.
The MLA said that a new substation is being built in Ayanavaram and power fluctuations in the area will be resolved with the installation of transformers in 52 places.
Prabhakar said such meetings would usher in transparency and also strengthen people’s faith in the government.