TIRUNELVELI: Conducting a field visit to intensify the land acquisition process for Tirunelveli city's western bypass road, Collector V Vishnu on Tuesday said the road that would be laid at an outlay of Rs 370 crore would provide a permanent solution to the heavy traffic congestion prevailing in the city. Citing Chief Minister M K Stalin's recent instructions to officials, Vishnu said the land acquisition for the bypass road would be completed by February next year and the construction would be completed within another two years.
"The 33-km long and 12-metre wide bypass road would pass through 14 villages, and of the 92.24 ha of land needed for the project, 23.53 ha is government poramboke land. A total of Rs 78.5 crore will be disbursed to land owners as compensation, and 30% of the land has already been acquired. Two railway bridges and a river (Pachaiyaru) bridge will also be constructed as part of this project, while the existing Thamirabarani river bridge will be accommodated into it," the Collector said.
Whom will the road benefit?
While the existing Madurai-Kanniyakumari national highway (NH-7) is situated on the eastern side of Tirunelveli city, the proposed bypass road will curve around the western city areas. The road stretch would commence at Thalaiyuthu, located on the north side of the city on NH-7, and end at Ponnakudi on the south side of the city.
"This western bypass road will link five State highways leading towards Tirunelveli city, and hence, the farmers will be able to transport their produce to the city without any hassle. The vehicles from Madurai, bound for Kerala, Tenkasi, Courtallam and Manimutharu will not need to enter the city after the road is opened to the public. Further, the vehicles from Rajapalayam, Tenkasi and Cheranmahadevi can proceed to Nagercoil skipping Tirunelveli city limits. This road will mitigate vehicular traffic snarls in the city to a huge extent, and save precious time and fuel for the commuters," Vishnu added.
Responding to queries from media persons, the Collector said the compensation amount for the rest of the land that needs to be acquired will be decided soon. "A special officer will carry out the land acquisition works. We have aligned this road route in such a way that it will cover several hectares of government poramboke land. Hence, this project will not significantly affect farm cultivation in the area.
We have also secured permissions from various entities, including the Forest Department, to ensure that the road construction will not be stopped midway," he added. Vishnu was accompanied by District Revenue Officer Jayasree Chellaiah and Divisional Engineer (Highway) Lingusamy during the field visit.