Chengalpattu: 16 years on, Singaperumal Koil flyover construction yet to finish

CHENNAI: Sandwiched between Chengalpattu and the high-tech Mahindra city, the satellite town of Singaperumal Koil is one of the fast developing neighbourhoods near Chennai. But the infrastructure in the area is woefully inadequate, with special reference to the massive flyover near the temple, which is still under construction even after 16 years.

Every day, commuters are stuck for several hours at the manned railway crossing between Guduvanchery and Singaperumal Koil stations.

To reinstate its significance, here’s a brief history of how this overpass came. The Singaperumal Koil-Sriperumbudur Road is one of the busiest arterial roads in the suburbs. Every day, lakhs of vehicles cross the railway crossing. Vehicles heading towards Oragadam SIPCOT would have to go via Singaperumal Koil Road.

There are more than 30 villages in Singaperumal Koil town, and thousands travel every day for various reasons. It’s a nightmare for commuters to cross the busy stretch every day since there would be bumper-to-bumper traffic on the National Highway with vehicles waiting up to 2 kilometres.

The railway crossing is also another headache, as it remains closed for hours, even during peak hours, to make way for express trains. This would cause the traffic to pile up on the NH, making the situation worse.

So, in 2007, the DMK government decided to construct a flyover connecting the NH and the Sriperumbudur-Oragadam Road in Tirukachur, and allocated over Rs 52 crore. But after the 2011 election, the plan was put on hold by the then ruling government AIADMK.

In 2021, the DMK government again resumed the work and allocated Rs 138.27 crore for the project. The pace of work was fast, and residents of the neighbourhood expected it to be inaugurated in a year or two.

But fast forward to May 2024, and they’re still waiting. Work has slowed down in the past few months, and there’s barely any activity going on. “Every day during peak hours, we wait for hours at the railway crossing. Even in the case of an emergency, we’re unable to travel out of Singaperumal Koil as the crossing would be closed for over an hour, at least. This overpass would have been immensely helpful,” rued Karthick, a resident of Singaperumal Koil.

Residents recalled an unfortunate incident a few months ago. During a medical emergency, a car got stuck at the railway crossing with an elderly man inside it. After waiting for nearly an hour, people carried him on their shoulders to the other side but as they could not reach the hospital on time, he passed away.

“This is only one of many incidents that have been going on here for years. In addition to keeping it closed for express trains to pass, the crossing often malfunctions, which adds to the closure time. We have had to cancel plans many times,” averred Janani, a regular commuter.

Residents and commuters want the Highways department to at least inaugurate the overpass towards Tambaram, as more than 80% work has been completed. However, the department officials claim that inaugurating a part of it would pose a safety hazard and could lead to accidents.

The overpass’s construction has been delayed because plans to build the pillars changed after officials found an old farm well under the ground. “There was a delay in acquiring the lands on both sides and a few electric poles had to be removed,” an official from the Highways department pointed out. “Hopefully, the work would be completed this year, and it would be inaugurated by December.”