The widening of Vaniyambadi-Tirupattur-Uthangarai Highway (NH 179A) in Tirupattur has picked up pace with more than a dozen illegal structures on both sides of the stretch being demolished by the State Highways Department on Saturday.
During his visit to the district last month, Chief Minister M.K. Stalin noticed that the route between Tirupattur town and Jolarpet had no basic facilities like street lights and pedestrian crossings. As a result, officials of the National Highways (NH) wing of the State Highways, which executes projects on behalf of the National Highways Association of India (NHAI), were directed by the State government to expedite the work.
“We are widening the stretch based on the availability of land on either side. The purpose of widening the stretch is to reduce by half the current travel time of an hour between Vaniyambadi and Uthangarai,” D. Kavitha, Assistant Divisional Engineer (ADE), State Highways, told The Hindu.
Funded under the NHAI’s Annual Plan for 2020-21, the ₹302-crore widening work involves laying a bitumen carriageway of one-foot thickness, building a concrete median, widening stormwater drains on both sides, constructing bus bays, erecting warning signage, installing reflectors and creating footpaths and zebra crossings. Street lights will be installed and maintained by the respective local bodies along the route. Of the total 45 km, the widening work has been completed for 30 km between Vaniyambadi and Tirupattur town.
At present, the widening work has progressed to a distance of 2.4 km from Tirupattur town towards Jolarpet. More than 100 illegal structures, including petty shops, roadside eateries and houses, were identified for demolition on the route. The stretch is being made four lane and is being widened from the existing 7 m to 14 m. Stormwater drains with a depth of 1.5 m are being built to discharge excess rainwater into nearby lakes and ponds.
Areas like Vaniyambadi, Tirupattur and Natrampalli are known for heavy rain during the monsoon. In fact, residents said this was the first time in many years the stretch was being widened, connecting key towns in Tirupattur with the Chennai-Bangalore Highway (NH48).
Officials said once the widening work was completed, the stretch would be maintained by the State Highways for five years before being handed over to the NHAI for regular maintenance. The work was started on December 28, 2020, with a deadline of 720 days for its completion.
“We are working to complete the project before the deadline by reducing traffic divisions on the route,” said V. Sindu, Assistant Engineer (AE), State Highways.
