TIRUCHY: A spontaneous protest broke out in Sirugamani town panchayat on Thursday after commuters alluded to the wobbly condition of a river bridge that sustained damages about two months ago. In June, a gravel-laden lorry, which was plying through the river bridge that connects Sirugamani town panchayat to Pettavaithalai village panchayat, rammed the bridge, resulting in major damages.
The bridge is one of the main routes connecting Sirugamani and Pettavaithalai to the Tiruchy-Karur National Highway. Despite several petitions, the officials concerned are yet to repair the bridge which is on the verge of collapse, rue residents.
"We used to reach the highway in 50 metres, courtesy of the river bridge. Now, we are forced to take a detour of 1.5 km. The bridge should be repaired at the earliest," said CPI functionary MRS Rajalingam. According to residents J Vijayakumar and Ilamparithi, the river bridge was built about 60 years ago by the panchayat. "Over the past one week, the condition of the bridge had worsened.
At the moment we allow only motorcycles and three-wheelers to pass through the bridge. The unstable condition of the bridge is affecting everyday life here," said residents. The protest that was taken out on Thursday was withdrawn after the town panchayat president Sivagami Sundari R rushed to the spot and assured action.
When contacted, Sivagami Sundari told TNIE, "We will the sanction order within a day or two, after which we will start the tender process; work will be completed at the earliest."