Coimbatore Corporation has fast tracked the execution of the lake development project it took up under the Smart Cities Mission.
Sources said the civic body looked to complete and throw open a few lakes ahead of the 2021 Assembly elections as the ruling party wanted to showcase it to the public. It also looked to expedite the execution to make good the time lost during the COVID-19 lockdown period.
Towards this end, the civic body had asked the contractor to double the number of labourers in the coming weeks. At present, there were 80 to 100 workers engaged in developing the Ukkadam Periyakulam and around 60 labourers at the Valangulam tank.
The Corporation had completed the 35 – 40% work in the Periyakulam and it hoped to complete the project and throw it open before the Election Commission of India imposed the Model Code of Conduct, the sources said.
The Corporation had similarly speeded up work at the Selva Chinthamani tank. The deadline for this tank was sometime around Pongal in January 2021, the sources said and added that around the same time the civic body also hoped to throw open the Valangulam tank.
The Corporation had taken up a part of the Periyakulam and Valangulam lakes on a priority basis to form a ‘quick win’ component of the lake development project. The Chief Minister had inaugurated the stretches that the Corporation had completed under the quick win component a few months ago.
The Corporation had taken up development of eight lakes under the Smart Cities Mission at over ₹ 700 crore.