CHENNAI: Establishment of Tidel parks to attract IT companies has been a brainchild of the DMK regime. The recent inauguration of the third Tidel Park in the State in Pattabiram had been an encouraging sign for residents, who had been asking for more development in the area.
However, they also lamented over the lack of adequate infrastructure to meet the demands of a new Tidel Park and the lackadaisical attitude of the State and Central agencies in addressing it.
Pattabiram is now seen as a hub of employment opportunities, especially for those residing in the western suburbs. But residents are unhappy with the abysmal rail and bus connectivity in and to the neighbourhood.
For instance, there are no basic facilities like lifts and escalators at the Pattabiram railway station. There’s a dangerous curve and a narrow railway road that takes around 10-15 minutes to navigate to reach Tidel Park.
“The area near the ticket counter is fully covered with garbage. The Railways has assigned personnel for cleaning it but it doesn’t happen regularly, and waste is dumped in the whole area. One side of the station is used by the drunkards at night causing safety concerns for passengers, including women and children,” said KS Gopalakrishnan, former member of the Zonal Railway Users Consultative Committee (ZRUCC), and a resident of Pattabiram. “When it rains, the area is fully waterlogged.”
The public announcement system has been non-functional for the past two years. “Also, the MRTS services from and to Arakkonam and other western suburbs must be resumed till Velachery,” said T Sadagopan, president of Tamil Nadu Progressive Consumer Centre. “Bus depot is located at the entrance of the building. But the number of bus services has reduced a lot after the works were started for the road over bridge (ROB) seven years ago. Now that the work is over, bus services must resume again.”
J Jayakumar, a resident of Pattabiram, concurred and added: “Metro Rail service, which is currently proposed till Avadi, should be extended till Pattabiram.”