Rapid growth continues to be marred by basic infrastructure issues, say residents

Tambaram, often described arsenic the gateway to Chennai, has emerged arsenic 1 of the fastest-growing suburban regions connected the city’s confederate fringes, driven by accelerated urbanisation, expanding residential layouts, and expanding commercialized activity.

With rising colonisation density and beardown roadworthy and obstruction connectivity, it has developed into a cardinal municipality hub nether the Tambaram City Municipal Corporation. However, inadequate underground drainage coverage, shortcomings successful coagulated discarded management, persistent postulation congestion connected arterial stretches specified arsenic GST Road, and contamination of h2o bodies stay large areas of concern.

The constituency encompasses a divers premix of municipality and semi-urban neighbourhoods, including Tambaram East and West, Selaiyur, Chitlapakkam, Peerkankaranai, Perungalathur, Mudichur, Hasthinapuram, Sembakkam, and Rajakilpakkam, on with peripheral areas specified arsenic Agaramthen, Madurapakkam, and Kovilanchery.

Currently represented by S.R. Raja of the DMK, a erstwhile two-time Chairman of the Tambaram Municipality, the constituency has witnessed important infrastructural enlargement successful caller years. However, the gait of municipality maturation has outstripped civic infrastructure, leaving residents grappling with persistent issues specified arsenic postulation congestion, inadequate drainage, discarded absorption challenges, and gaps successful basal amenities.

As Tambaram continues to alteration into a large suburban centre, the constituency presents a analyzable premix of improvement opportunities and governance challenges, making it a closely-watched conception successful the electoral landscape.

Traffic congestion is simply a large contented particularly astir Tambaram town, GST Road, and the autobus terminus, wherever encroachments and dense conveyance question make regular bottlenecks. Road conditions successful galore interior areas are poor, with potholes and deficiency of maintenance, and these problems worsen during the monsoon owed to h2o stagnation.

B. Mahendra Poopathi, President of the Perungalathur–Peerkankaranai Residents’ Welfare Association, said that Perungalathur serves arsenic an introduction constituent to Chennai city. Over 2 lakh radical reside successful the area, with 17 IT firms employing much than 30,000 people. “From Zone 4 of the Tambaram Corporation alone, we lend betwixt ₹62 crore and ₹70 crore successful the archetypal fractional of the fiscal year,” helium said.

He pointed retired that the underground drainage task for the country has been announced lone arsenic elections approach.

Flyover project

The flyover project, which began successful 2020 to link Peerkankaranai and Perungalathur with Sadanandapuram and Alappakkam, is yet to beryllium completed. He besides highlighted a shortage of constabulary unit successful the jurisdiction. “Roads are being tarred lone for namesake now, but due relaying has not been done for the past four-and-a-half years,” helium added.

He further alleged that the long-pending request for a ft overbridge successful Perungalathur, akin to those successful Tambaram and Pallavaram, has not been fulfilled. Traffic congestion continues to beryllium a large contented on the agelong from Guduvanchery to Pallavaram, contempt promises by the sitting DMK MLA to easiness the situation.

He besides noted that delays successful extending underground drainage facilities to recently added areas successful and astir Tambaram person led to repeated spending of ₹10 lakh to ₹20 lakh annually connected cleaning polluted lakes and removing h2o hyacinth. “There is nary imperishable strategy for rainwater drainage, and our long-pending request for h2o proviso from the Palar stream remains unfulfilled,” helium added.

S.M. Govindarajan, Founder President of the United Federation of Residents’ Welfare Associations nether the Tambaram City Municipal Corporation, said that Shanmugam Road, the main bazaar area, continues to look terrible congestion. “Movement of postulation from Shanmugam Road towards GST Road has been wholly blocked owed to the operation of a wall, forcing motorists to instrumentality a longer way to entree the flyover that begins connected Mudichur Road,” helium said. He besides noted the lack of a authorities assemblage successful Tambaram and alleged that respective parks were opened hurriedly without due readying oregon maintenance.

Mr. Govindarajan further highlighted that the underground drainage strategy remains incomplete, with untreated sewage being discharged into lakes specified arsenic Perungalathur, Sembakkam, Mudichur, and Madambakkam. “No factual steps person been taken to reconstruct oregon support these h2o bodies, which are important sources of h2o for residents,” helium added.

P. Viswanathan, convener of the Chitlapakkam Residents’ Welfare Associations Coordination Committee, besides urged the authorities to instrumentality an underground drainage strategy successful the country astatine the earliest, a request being made for implicit 25 years. He said that lakes and aboveground h2o bodies crossed Chitlapakkam, Perungalathur, Sembakkam, and Madambakkam person been polluted, and stressed the request for contiguous hold of underground drainage facilities to each recently added areas to code the issue.

Waste absorption is different important concern, with irregular garbage postulation successful immoderate neighbourhoods and dumping successful unfastened spaces and adjacent h2o bodies. This leads to sanitation issues and wellness risks for residents. Drainage infrastructure is inadequate successful respective areas, resulting successful predominant flooding and sewage overflow adjacent during mean rainfall, the residents alleged.

Stray cattle and dogs are commonly seen connected roads, posing risks to pedestrians and motorists. Basic civic infrastructure specified arsenic thoroughfare lighting and attraction of nationalist facilities is inconsistent crossed the constituency, with complaints astir non-functional lights and poorly maintained nationalist spaces.

The constituency MLA, S.R. Raja, said that important improvement works person been carried retired implicit the past 5 years, with a beardown absorption connected stormwater drainage pursuing the dense floods of 2015 and 2021. “We person undertaken respective stormwater drain projects, including cut-and-cover works, to forestall h2o stagnation during the monsoon. Underground drainage has been implemented successful halfway Tambaram areas, and steps person been taken to widen the strategy to recently added areas specified arsenic Perungalathur, Chitlapakkam, Madambakkam, and Peerkankaranai,” helium said.

He noted that the committedness to upgrade Tambaram Municipality into a corp has been fulfilled, and that the instauration of the Tambaram City Police, pursuing the trifurcation of the Greater Chennai Police, has improved policing. He besides highlighted the constitution of a railway 3rd terminal successful Tambaram with premium trains specified arsenic Tejas and Vande Bharat present halting there. “Tambaram railway presumption handles a important rider load,” helium added.

Mr. Raja further said that cardinal roadworthy infrastructure has been improved, including stretches connecting GST Road, Madambakkam, Velachery, and Tambaram, portion parks and basal amenities person been developed successful surrounding areas. A territory office infirmary has besides been established successful the constituency.

“Underground drainage works successful Tambaram person been completed, and tenders person been floated to statesman enactment successful newly-added areas The corp has strengthened its manpower and continues to enactment towards further improvements,” helium said.

He added that postulation congestion connected GST Road has reduced considerably pursuing the operation of flyovers successful Tambaram and Perungalathur. “Work is nether mode to easiness congestion connected Mudichur Road, and successful the coming days, we volition absorption connected completing these projects,” helium said.

DMK representatives had won 7 times successful Tambaram constituency successful 1970s. M.A. Vaithiyalingam of DMK was elected successful 1989, 1996, 2001. S.R. Raja of DMK was elected successful 2006 and subsequently, AIADMK campaigner T.K.M. Chinnayya was elected successful 2011. Again Mr. Raja was elected successful 2016 and 2021.