COIMBATORE: Senior citizens visiting the Maruthamalai temple will have to wait longer for the lift service, as the contractor has got the height of the facility wrong. The structure has to be built again, but the work is going on at a snail’s pace.
Chief Minister M K Stalin laid the foundation stone for the Rs 5.4 crore project in April 2023, and it was to be completed this year. Sources said the construction work remains stalled for months because of the faulty design. TNIE has learnt that the height of the structure raised by the builder didn’t comform to the plan. According to sources, the structure stands 8 feet taller than how it should be and it has to cut to size, but the work is dragging on.
Moreover, trustees allege that though the contractor is ready to do it again, HR&CE officials are yet to give the revised design. Sources said an architect who designed the lift free of cost initially is sitting on the revision plan now.
“We came to know that the reason for the delay in carrying out the lift work is only due to the lethargy of HR&E officials. No information related to the lift was shared with us,” said one of the trustees.
Assistant Commissioner of Maruthamalai Temple (HR & CE) SV Harshinii admitted that there was a problem in the design, adding corrective measures have been initiated.
“We will complete the work within six months as this is the first initiative by the government. No other hill temple has lift facility. After Maruthamalai, the government has proposed similar facility in Swamimalai. The delay in commissioning was because of continuous rain and small variations in the design,” she said.
Harshinii added that the department selected an experienced contractor as per the tender norms, but they have not executed such a project before.