The setting up of the Integral Coach Factory (ICF) at Perambur in 1952 was a watershed moment in the history of this otherwise nondescript constituency in northern Chennai. Not only did the ICF provide jobs to hundreds, it acted as a catalyst in the development of a tertiary sector that catered to the needs of the burgeoning workforce. However, the six decades between the setting up of ICF and the present have not been kind on Perambur, which remained largely a mute spectator while other neighbourhoods of the expanding metropolis reaped rich dividends.
Every shower deals telling blows on Perambur, a low-lying area, leaving roads and tenements waterlogged. The residents blame the inundation on erratic desilting of Captain Cotton Canal and Kodungaiyur Canal. Water spilling on to the roads carry filth from Kudangaiyur dumpyard to residential areas, adding to their woes. The residents and Corporation officials have several times locked horns over the issue of shifting the dumpyard away from residential locality.
Nowhere is the misery of people more evident than at the housing board colony at Sathyamoorthy Nagar in Vyasarpadi. The colony, which came up in 1963, was the first-of-its-kind settlement in Tamil Nadu. Every rainy season, the residents of hundreds of tenements battle sewage overflow and inundation. With inundation come mosquitoes, says Bacilla Thangamani, a long time resident at Tamil Nadu Slum Clearance Board tenement in Sathyamurthy Nagar.
“Mosquito menace is one of the biggest issues here during nights because of the sewage overflow,” Thangamani adds.
The only major infrastructure facility to come up at the locality in recent times is the Vyasarpadi railway overbridge. The partially opened facility has to an extent eased the traffic flow, but the residents are not impressed. “We have been demanding an overbridge at Ganeshapuram subway for years. The population explosion has meant more vehicles on roads, leading to bottlenecks during peak hours. During rains, the subway remains waterlogged. An overbridge there would help pedestrians a lot,” says N Elango, a social activist.
For a place that plays an integral role in joining distant parts of the country, Perambur itself grapples with connectivity issues. Share autos are the only form of accessible transport for the people, who bemoan the lack of proper bus facility. “Recently, a small bus was introduced on route S67 connecting KKD Nagar with Perambur via Krishnamoorthy Nagar, Meenambal Salai, MKB Nagar and Vyasarpadi. At Doveton, which is 5 km away from Perambur railway station, there is no bus link,” says P V Anand, secretary of West KKD Nagar Welfare Association.
This erstwhile DMK bastion has turned a CPM stronghold, with the Left party winning from here in the past three outings. The ruling party won from here once in 1991. Though the residents are not unhappy with sitting MLA A Soundararajan, they believe the lack of development of the locality is largely due to his being in the Opposition.
Mosquito Menace Biggest Woe
Nowhere is the misery of people more evident than at the housing board colony at Sathyamoorthy Nagar in Vyasarpadi. The colony, which came up in 1963, was the first-of-its-kind settlement in Tamil Nadu. Every rainy season, the residents of hundreds of tenements battle sewage overflow and inundation. With inundation come mosquitoes, says Bacilla Thangamani, a resident at Tamil Nadu Slum Clearance Board tenement. “Mosquito menace is one of the biggest issues here because of the sewage overflow,” she adds.
[[Mosquito menace is one of the biggest issues in Sathyamoorthy Nagar during nights because of the sewage overflow — Bacilla Thangamani, A resident of Sathyamurthy Nagar
[[Recently, a small bus was introduced on route S67. But, there is no bus link at Doveton, which is 5 km away from Perambur railway station — P V Anand, Secretary of West KKD Nagar Welfare Association
