3 months ago
2
Citing a crisp emergence successful vehicular postulation on the 102.5-km Salem-Chengapalli agelong of National Highway (NH) 544, arsenic highlighted by Tiruppur MP K. Subbarayan, the Centre has initiated steps to widen the existing four-lane road into a six-lane expressway. A Detailed Project Report (DPR) for the task is presently nether preparation.
Mr. Subbarayan has, implicit the past 3 years, met Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari on respective occasions successful New Delhi and submitted representations urging aboriginal execution of the project.
In his petitions, the MP pointed retired that the road is simply a cardinal corridor linking Salem, Namakkal, Erode, and Coimbatore successful Tamil Nadu with Palakkad, Thrissur, and Kochi successful Kerala. While the 54-km Chengapalli-Coimbatore agelong has already been widened to six lanes, the remaining 102.5-km agelong up to Salem continues to run arsenic a four-lane road.
Nearly 30,000 vehicles ply the road everyday, starring to predominant congestion, accrued substance consumption, and higher c emissions, the MP said, stressing that the enlargement is captious not lone for infrastructure improvement but besides to easiness hardships faced by roadworthy users and the public.
In a caller connection to the MP, Mr. Gadkari stated that the DPR is nether mentation and further enactment volition beryllium taken based connected the result of the study. On different demands raised, the Minister said work roads connecting junctions with adjacent vehicular underpasses (VUPs) and a flyover astatine Pethampalayam and Vijayamangalam person already been approved, with works successful progress. Regarding projected VUPs astatine Saralai Junction and Nasiyanur Junction, the Minister said bids volition beryllium invited during the existent fiscal twelvemonth nether the Annual Road Safety Plan 2025-26.
The MP had besides sought a flyover astatine Lakshmi Nagar adjacent Bhavani to code recurring postulation congestion. The Minister informed that support has been granted for the operation of a flyover connected the left-hand broadside and that the bidding process is nether way. The request for a flyover connected the right-hand broadside volition beryllium examined and finalised based connected the findings of the DPR survey for the Salem-Chengapalli section, helium added.
