Collectorate road dug up; Mayor, councillor in dark

VELLORE: The Corporation officials have a mind of their own as the visitors to the Vellore Collectorate were taken aback when they found one side of the approach road being dug up. Nobody knows why a perfectly laid road was being re-laid.

While one side of the road was dug up from the NH direction, both sides of the road were dug up on the stretch leading from the Collectorate to the SP’s office and beyond.

When asked about this, councillor Sumathi Manoharan (BJP, ward 18) said, “I do not know why the road was dug up. I think it was to lay a pipeline.” When it was pointed out that only the edge of the road would be dug up for laying pipelines, she had no answer, but assured to look into the matter.

Similarly, Mayor Sujatha Anandakumar was also ignorant when asked why a road without potholes was being re-laid. She said, “This is the first time I am hearing of this work. I think you should ask the Commissioner.” However, repeated attempts to contact Corporation Commissioner Ashok Kumar were of no avail.

What irked locals is that the local body citing lack of funds has been unable to pay pending dues to contractors resulting in even minor repair works not being taken up. “When this is the case, why a good road laid less than two years ago should be re-laid is a moot question,” said Vellore District Consumer Federation president K Sathiyamoorthy.