TN should Take call on Elevated Road.

Union Minister of State for Road Transport and Highways, Pon Radhakrishnan recently said the Centre has put the ball in the court of Tamil Nadu to revive the Chennai Port-Maduravoyal elevated corridor project. The project was suspended in 2012 due to a row between Water Resources Department (WRD) and National Highways Authority of India (NHAI).

'If Tamil Nadu government wants change in the alignment or even if they want the project to be totally altered, we are ready for it,' said the minister.

He was optimistic that the project which was suspended by the WRD due to violations of alignment near Spurtank road and pillars being constructed inside Cooum River would be revived.

'We are hopeful that it will be revived. This project is important for Chennai Port,' said Radhakrishnan, who has been working to end the stalemate.

NHAI sources said they are willing to take the project on any alignment the State wants. 'The ball is in their court,' said a NHAI source.

It is learnt that the State is yet to allocate 18 km of land. Till now, it has allocated only 6 km of land to NHAI, and some land across Cooum has to be acquired.

Meanwhile, the six-lane Chennai-Bangalore expressway has also hit a hurdle as land acquisition for the project is yet to take off. 'It has yet to be taken up as there is no Competent Authority for Land Acquisition (CALA). There is a person looking after it but he is burdened with other work,' said the source. Efforts are underway to make Colachel the fourth port of the State. 'If the state government gives its consent, then Colachel Port could come up,' a source added.


THE NEW INDIAN EXPRESS