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Stalin writes to Gadkari on bad condition of Chennai-Bengaluru highway

CM says he had to plan his travel by train due to poor condition of road

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin | PTI Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin | PTI

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin on Saturday wrote to Union transport minister Nitin Gadkari raising concern over the poor condition of the Chennai-Bengaluru highway. He urged Gadkari to expedite six-laning of the stretch and repair the road to maintain its good condition.

In his letter, Stalin said he had to plan his recent travel to Ranipet, Vellore, Tirupathur and Thiruvannamalai districts by train as the roads were in a bad condition. The chief minister requested the transport minister to issue necessary directions to the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) to repair the roads and expedite the six-laning work. 

Stalin’s letter comes after Gadkari’s answer in parliament to a question raised by DMK MP Dayanidhi Maran on this issue. 

The chief minister said: “It is unfortunate that an impression that the state government was not cooperating with NHAI has been underlined in your reply in parliament. This is not true and we have been trying to expedite all major infrastructure projects without discriminating between the projects undertaken by the state and the Union governments.” 

He also asked Gadkari to direct NHAI authorities to look into the specific request raised by Dayanidhi Maran with regard to the NH-4 stretch from Sriperumbudur to Walajapet where the six-laning work is in progress. Stalin also recalled the orders passed by the Madras High Court with regard to reduction in the toll fees by 50 per cent at Sriperumbudur and Chennasamudram toll plazas due to bad condition of the roads. 

Stalin said that the repair work has been held up due to “the contractual issues” between the NHAI and the contractors. He also noted that the Chennai Port-Maduravoyal elevated Expressway has been revived and that all possible help is being extended by the state government. The Sriperumbudur-Walajapet stretch is a nightmare to the commuters, he said adding that the poor road condition increases the travel time from Chennai to Bengaluru by at least an hour. 

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