Announcing this during MGR’s birth centenary celebrations at Nagercoil on Saturday amid thunderous applause from his cabinet colleagues and participants, he said that all necessary steps would be undertaken to expedite the process to upgrade the municipality.

It has been a long pending demand of the residents and leaders of various parties, including Union Minister Pon Radhakrishnan and N Thalavai Sundaram, Special Representative of TN Government, New Delhi, who had submitted petitions to the government in this regard in the past.

Apart from this, the Chief Minister listed a slew of measures for all round development of the district. In a major boost to Kanniyakumari’s tourism, Palaniswami said that rope car facility would be introduced from Kanniyakumari to Vivekananda Rock and a marine bridge would be built from the Rock Memorial to Tiruvalluvar statue at a cost of Rs 120 crore under the public private partnership mode.

In addition to this, the government as part of its efforts to augment the ferry service, the Chief Minister announced that infrastructure would be ramped up at the jetty to provide more space at Rs 20 crore and two more boats, which would be purchased for Rs 6 crore, would be pressed into service.

In other measures to boost basic amenities and other facilities, he said that Alahiyapandipuram combined drinking water scheme at a cost of Rs 40 lakh t be extended up to Kanniyakumari, Killiyur and Serupalur and a check dam would be built crore across Pazhayar at Thamaraikulam village in Agastheeswaram taluk.

Referring to demands of Vilavancode MLA, Palaniswami said road infrastructure would be improved in a phased manner. A high-level bridge would be constructed at an estimate of Rs 340 crore between Kottar and Chettikulam on NH-47. Funds to the tune of Rs 90 crore had already been set aside for land acquisition.

In good news to the students, the Chief Minister said that the number of seats in Kanniyakumari Government Medical College would be increased to 150 from the present 100. Further, the medical college would be equipped with the state-of-the-art equipment at Rs 8.82 crore. Twenty health centres would be set up in Thovalai taluk at Rs 2.68 crore, he added.