Residents of Mylapore want Canal Bank Road, near Thirumayilai MRTS station, to be freed of encroachments and re-laid. This issue was discussed at length during a meeting that Mylapore Residents Welfare Association (MRWA) had with the newly-elected MLA of Mylapore, R. Nataraj.
Recently, the MLA spent 90 minutes studying this stretch and surrounding areas.
K. Viswanathan, secretary, MRWA, says, “The revamping of the road will ease traffic congestion on Venkatesa Agraharam Road. Garbage and scrap materials are found dumped along the road and encroachments have narrowed the width of the road. It is an important link road that connects Luz, Dr. Ranga Road and Abhiramapuram. Though the MRTS station has a spacious parking facility, it is not being optimally used as the approach road (Canal Bank Road) is in a poor condition. Visitors to the Kapaleeshwar temple and Sai Baba temple could park their vehicles at the facility, if Canal Bank Road is revamped”
Similarly, encroachments on Kalvi Varu Street have to be removed too.
“If the stretch is restored, it will ease traffic movement on Royapettah High Road. To decongest the Mada Streets we suggested that North Mada Street be made the entry point and South Mada Street, the exit point,” says Viswanathan.
The MLA was also apprised about the accumulation of garbage and the squalid conditions in the areas surrounding the apartments (constructed by Tamil Nadu and Slum Clearance Board) in Pallakku Maniam and Kapali Thottam.
“A lot of rubbish is found in the Buckingham Canal beneath the MRTS station. This problem has to be addressed on a war footing. During the visit, the MLA suggested that a group of volunteers be formed at the tenements and educated on the responsible way of disposing waste and the group in turn would be expected to educate the other residents at these tenements” adds Viswanathan.
On June 10, the MLA made another visit to the area and initiated a mass-cleaning drive.
