The Sandal City of Tirupathur, surrounded by the sandalwood trees of the Jawadu hills and rich in archaeological heritage, is all set for its first ever urban local body polls after the formation of the Tirupathur district in 2019. The Tirupathur municipality, headquarters of the district, still awaits any major infrastructure projects even after three years.
The National Highways (NH) project from Jolarpet to Uthangarai in Krishnagiri cutting across the town is being carried out at a snail's pace. The only road connecting the town with Vaniyambadi and the Chennai - Bengaluru NH is unmotorable, causing inconvenience to many. The dust arising from the road project is causing difficulties for commuters. Locals also complain of frequent accidents on the stretch.
According to Siranjeevi, a resident, street roads are non-existent in some of the areas. "Most of the roads are damaged. The street lights are not functioning and it is unsafe for people to venture out at night. This is a district headquarters, but we don't have any amenities for that here," he added.
The residents also complained of an irregular supply of drinking water. "It's unreliable nowadays. Earlier we used to get water on alternative days. Now, the supply is on every four days. The road was dug up two years ago for underground sewage canal works, but the works have not been completed yet. Vehicles can't enter the street," said V Thennappan from Dhandapani Koil street. He also complained of rainwater stagnation, and demanded building of storm water drains.
People demand to bring the overhead water storage tank in Arif Nagar to use. The bus stand in the town has poor sanitation and lacks basic amenities. Revamping and modernising the bus stand is also much sought. An outer ring road, a playground, development of industrial clusters within the town, completion of underground drainage projects at the earliest, desilting of Periya Eri and Andhaneri, and controlling the stray dog menace are other things in the wishlist.
The municipality, with a strength of 32,651 males 34,448 females and 11 other voters, will be having its 11th local polls come February 19. A total of 67,110 voters in the 36 wards will cast their votes on the day. While the dravidian majors DMK and AIADMK are facing head to head in 30 wards, the BJP is contesting in 14 wards and the PMK is contesting in 11 wards. Political observers say the mood is favourable to the ruling party and that it is set to sweep the President post reserved for the Scheduled Caste category.