TIRUCHY: The risks posed by the poorly-maintained roads of Pachamalai hills in Thuraiyur taluk compel its residents - mostly tribals - to think twice before hopping on to their two-wheelers: commuting through the village-roads to the nearby towns is not just a bumpy drive but a threat to life too.
Even TNSTC staff hesitate to ply buses on the roads. The area comprises of around 30 hamlets. The residents say they gave up hope in official action after prolonged apathy. The concerns of G Selvaganapathy, a resident of Maruthai in Pachamalai, were pinned down by varying reasons, which ranged from officials of the revenue department transferring the road-laying responsibility to the forest department to the latter citing a shortage of funds.
However, Selvaganapathy later said the revenue department recently kicked off the laying of a road from Thuraiyur to Pachamalai, grieving over the condition of the 14-km stretch from Sobanapuram to Top Sengatupatti. It is the around 1,500 or so students of the 11 villages who have to put up with the consequences, as the resulting unavailability of buses force their parents to drive them to school, Selvaganapathy added. S Parvathi, a resident of Erumapatti village, spoke of the woes of pregnant women: most of them, into the last months of their pregnancy, rent a house in the valley due to fear of miscarriage on road.
An official of the forest department said they were last week notified of funds by the tribal welfare department, and a Government order (G.O.) is yet to be issued. S Sakthivel, the general manager at the Tiruchy TNSTC depot pointed to unfavourable conditions for bus operation through the route.