Centre urged to complete Madukkarai-Walayar Highway

COIMBATORE: Tamil Nadu BJP General Secretary, GKS Selvakumar today demanded the intervention of the Centre for early completion on Madukkarai-Walayar Highway, works of which were started five years ago and left half way.

The four-lane road project from Chengapalli to Walayar was given to IVRCL in 2010 on Built Operate Transfer (BOT) basis at a cost of Rs 850 crore and allowed to collect toll for 20 years from the date of completion, he said in a letter to MoS for Road Transport and Highways and Shipping, Pon Radhakrishnan.

The works were stopped in 2012, reportedly due to paucity of funds and 15 kms stretch between Madukkarai and Walayar connecting Tamil Nadu and Kerala, was dug and lie unattended for the last couple of years, he said.

Since thousand of vehicles, including trucks and lorries, ply daily on the road, the people are facing a lot of hardships, including physical strains and frequent accidents, he added.

Selvakumar appealed to Radhakrishnan to take up the issue on war footing and complete the project at the earliest, considering the transportation needs of India and other States, particularly Tamil Nadu and Kerala.