Angry Tambaram residents stage protest seeking immediate road repair

CHENNAI: Vexed that the Tambaram Corporation has not repaired the canal and bridge that were damaged two months ago, residents from the neighbourhood blocked the road in protest on Friday morning.

The newly constructed canal and bridge on the Somangalam-Darkas Road near Tambaram were damaged about two months ago. This important stretch connects the area to West Tambaram, Kannadapalayam, Darkas, Kishkinta, Naduveerapattu, and Somangalam. It also links many schools, colleges, and government offices in the area.

When they were damaged, officials came to the spot and promised to undertake repair work. Till then, they arranged an alternate route. However, the alternate road is narrow and damaged, and cannot handle the volume of traffic, resulting in vehicle pileup for nearly two km during peak hours.

After waiting for nearly two months without any progress in repair work, the residents gathered on Darkas Road on Friday morning and staged a protest against the corporation. Some of them alleged that the road that connects the local Tasmac shop was repaired immediately while the important bridge used by hundreds of people was being neglected for more than two months.

After the protest hit the traffic, officials from Tambaram police station, Corporation, and Highways Department came to the spot and held discussions with the protestors. They promised that the bridge would be repaired within a few days, after which they gave up the protest and dispersed.