Greenery on NH
Trees and vegetation along the National Highway from Kanyakumari to Madurai are scanty. The Incredible benefits they provide to our communities are numerous. Reducing the concentration of pollutants from vehicle emission, noise reduction, reducing soil erosion, flood control and sequestration of large amounts of carbon, minimising roadside maintenance etc. are a few.
Planting seedlings of native trees and roadside vegetation of wildflowers, grasses and other plants is extremely important in conserving native plant species. For planting, watering and maintaining, resources must be provided either by the government or corporate houses.
I request the district authorities to take initiatives to make this a reality before the onset of monsoon.
G. Stanley Jeyasingh,
Nagercoil.
Train halt
Palayamkottai railway station is one of the oldest and important stations in the Tirunelveli-Tiruchendur section. But the Tiruchendur-Chennai Express does not halt at Palayamkottai station in both directions.
People who have reserved their tickets have to go to Tirunelveli Junction either by taxi or by auto-rickshaw for which they have to pay an exorbitant amount. The railway authorities should look into this matter and arrange for a halt of Tiruchendur Express in both directions in Palayamkottai station.
P. Victor Selvaraj,
Palayamkottai.
Safety of passengers
Recently I travelled from Tirunelveli to Madurai by a State-owned bus. The time taken to reach Madurai is usually around three hours. Some buses halt at roadside motels, extending the travel time beyond three hours. I was extremely surprised as the fast passenger bus that I had boarded stopped at 3 or 4 places on the way either to drop or pick up passengers reached Madurai within two hours. Just as everybody else, I was immensely pleased as the bus had arrived at the destination much earlier than the scheduled time. Consequently, I had an extra hour or so at my disposal.
However, the primary concern of the drivers, more than anything else, should be safety of passengers. Drivers not familiar with traffic rules to be followed on the National Highway will put their life and those of the travelling public at stake. The safety of all passengers travelling in such speeding buses rests entirely in the hands of the drivers. Hence, it will be better if drivers give top priority to safety of passengers than reaching the destination within an incredibly short span of time, while driving on highways.
S. Rajkumar Immanuel,
Palayamkottai.
Ration shops
Ration shops are invariably similar in appearance everywhere. Having not been whitewashed for years together and continuously ill maintained, these buildings become an eyesore. Some of the buildings that house ration goods seem dilapidated with uncontrollable growth of plants and bushes all around.
Eventually, they become the abode of obnoxious reptiles. Those who draw their monthly ration from these shops are least bothered about the poor condition of the building. However, you cannot always expect the government or the civil supplies authorities to do all that is within their powers to restore the buildings and their surroundings to their original glory.
Instead, an initiative can be made from the consumers’ side. A few service-minded volunteers drawn from among them can collect a nominal sum, say Rs.5 or 10, per cardholder. With the assistance of the PDS staff, the collected sum can be utilised for whitewashing the buildings, cleaning up the compound and so on. If sufficient vacant land is available, saplings can be planted and reared up, which would grow into large shady trees, providing shelter to the consumers.
I.C. Manmohan,
Palayamkottai.
Potholes on NH
Of late, we come across potholes and damage even on four-track roads maintained by NHAI. One such spot lies between FCI godown overbridge and Thoothukudi Collectorate. Vehicles coming from Tirunelveli and proceeding towards harbour have to take the service road right under this bridge. Fairly, a major portion of the toll road a few feet ahead of the service road is heavily cratered. Needles to emphasise it can lead to accidents.
Heavy trucks bound for harbour frequent this road. Day by day, the damage enlarges. With the Collectorate just a km away, this stretch is crowded by office-goers in two-wheelers during peak hours. Repairing this stretch at the earliest will prevent accidents.
Edison Devakaram,
Thoothukudi.
Sand accumulation
About two months ago, there was a two-wheeler accident near the CSI Cathedral in Palayamkottai in which the pillion rider was crushed to death as the vehicle skidded on the sand accumulated on the margins.
There was a hue and cry in the media and some volunteers plunged into action to remove the loose sand on the roadside and the Tirunelveli Corporation too sent its men to accomplish the task.
The Hindu also published the news.
The windy season is not yet over and once again there is copious sand ready to topple two-wheelers, if they happen to go along the roadside.
I wish the Corporation took permanent measures to remove the sand by fixing paver-blocks on the road side.
E. Rajakumar Arulanandham,
Palayamkottai.
