Wednesday, September 06, 2006
At last, some signs of development in the Coimbatore city
A LONG and desperate wait for improved infrastructure in Coimbatore seems to be heading for an end if the positive signs from the Coimbatore Corporation are not deceptive.
Roads that should measure up to the reputation of an eminent city, multi-tier parking lots, subways, an additional water scheme to meet the rapid rise in population and flyovers that can reduce the present chaos on the existing thoroughfares - these are some of the developments in store for the city. At last, some positive signs are definitely emerging from the congested Town Hall, where the Corporation's head office is located.
Is the information technology park, coming up in Peelamedu, forcing the image makeover? Or are the city managers tired of poor and worn out facilities? Neither.
The Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) of the Union Ministry of Urban Development has come as a boon to Chennai, Coimbatore and Madurai Corporations.
Coimbatore has prepared an elaborate City Development Plan (CDP) containing schemes for over Rs. 1,400 crore. It has entered into a Memorandum of Agreement with the Ministry on the plan. The city police too is to get some funds under the scheme for traffic management. So will the Highways Department for improving its roads that criss-cross the city. Even as the Corporation has put itself in the fast forward mode towards implementation of the scheme, public confidence remains low over its ability to bring about changes at the desired pace.
The delay in the implementation of the underground drainage scheme proposed in 1998 and the Pilloor second phase drinking water scheme that was also mooted around that time are cited as instances that contribute to low levels of public optimism over schemes taking off.
These schemes had not taken off for a long time as the Corporation faced funds constraints and councillors had resented huge loans fearing a huge repayment (and interest) burden that could, inevitably, be passed on to the people in the form of high usage charges.
But, with 50 per cent funds to come from the Centre and 20 per cent from the State Government under the JNNURM, the Corporation is confident of implementing all the schemes that are pending for years and also some new ones that seek to elevate the status of the city.
What lends more credibility to the entire scheme is the time frame of implementation. All the projects should be completed in seven years.
The unprinted message from both the Governments is: "We will give most of the money, but you finish the job on time." The Corporation also feels that it can speed up the process and meet the deadline with more experts on hand and that is why it has sought more engineers, right up to the level of a Superintending Engineer to oversee this scheme alone.
If things proceed in the right direction, traffic will flow smooth on the city roads and pedestrians will not impede it but take subways to cross these stretches. Now, there is not even one subway.
Roads in commercial hubs may not be choked with parked vehicles as multi-tier lots for these will be built. Garbage will not turn the city an eyesore as a scheme for Rs. 56 crore will ensure that biodegradable waste is converted into manure.
Waste disposal
And, a separate facility for the disposal of bio-medical waste is already on a trial run.
Even if the IT park brings a huge inflow of people, the new water scheme will not put pressure on the Corporation to look skywards and pray throughout the year for heavy rain to fill up the Siruvani Dam. The scheme aims to relocate all slums encroaching on waterbodies to multi-storeyed tenements planned in the city border.
An area that remains a cause for concern is unbridled construction of multi-storeyed shopping complexes that do not offer parking space.
What the city needs is accident-free roads, uninterrupted water supply, total sanitation through underground sewers and waste management (with total public support) and good maintenance of infrastructure. The JNNURM measures up to these requirements. But, all eyes are on the Corporation now.
