CHENNAI: With the northeast monsoon just a month away, Velachery residents have urged the civic body to carry out immediate patchwork on roads riddled with deep potholes, particularly on interior stretches, warning that conditions could worsen during the rains.
TNIE visited a few affected areas, including Vijayanagar, where multiple stretches were found to be in poor shape. The 100-feet road near Vijayanagar bus stand was no exception.
“It has been only three months since I started working at this shop, but I have already seen people fall while trying to cross this damaged stretch. At night, it poses a greater risk, especially for those unfamiliar with the area,” a shopkeeper on Vijayanagar 1st Cross Street said.
Karthikeyan K (24), a resident, said the road serves as a shortcut connecting the 100-feet road with Velachery Junction or the service road. “The road has been in the same condition for more than a year, but no relaying or repair work has been taken up.
The road is also flood-prone and faces water stagnation during heavy rain. At least patchwork should be done before the monsoon,” he said. S Kumararaja of the Federation of Velachery Welfare Association said Shastri Street, Kambar Street and Mahatma Gandhi Street in Annai Indira Nagar, besides Ram Nagar 5th Street, were also in poor condition.
“When I approach corporation officials, they often say bitumen patching is not being done now, and potholes are filled only with debris. But this debris will not withstand even a day of rainfall,” he said, adding that several major roads in wards 176, 177 and 178 are in bad shape, with a few being seven to eight years old.
The civic body has recently allocated Rs 22 crore for immediate road restoration and repair works across the city. A corporation official told TNIE that roads requiring patchwork had been identified and tenders floated. “Orders will be issued soon, and the work will be taken up.”
