Demand to boost infra in Madurai | Madurai News

Madurai: Even as the white paper on the state’s economy has been released by finance minister and Madurai Central MLA P T R Palanivel Thiaga Rajan that shows a heavy deficit and the burden on each family, hopes are riding high on the minister to give a boost to infrastructure in Madurai in the revised budget to be presented on August 13.
In a pre-budget memorandum to Rajan and commercial taxes minister P Moorthy, the Tamilnadu Chamber of Commerce and Industry has pressed for implementation of eight different infrastructure projects in Madurai that will benefit a cross section of the populace. This includes introducing metro rail services and a bus port in the city.
Chamber president N Jegatheesan said that Madurai with a population of more than 25 lakh is the second most affected by traffic crisis in the state after Chennai. Increasing number of vehicles day-by-day, lack of adequate wide roads and necessary flyovers are attributed as reasons for the traffic congestion. Introduction of metro rail project will greatly help to overcome the problem.
While metro rail has been announced in Coimbatore, non-announcement for Madurai is a great disappointment to the people in southern districts of Tamil Nadu. The chamber said that it is possible to extend the same to Madurai as the Union government would sanction if the state approves to cover 50% of the total cost incurred in a city with a population of more than 10 lakh.
The trade body said that the proposal to set up bus ports in Salem, Coimbatore and Madurai were simultaneously made by the Union government and added that it is learnt that sanction was accorded for the two other cities. Work has commenced to establish the port at Rs 1,600 crore in Salem. Stating that the district administration identified a site at Karadikal, near AIIMS, as suitable for the project, they pressed for expedition of the project.
Jegatheesan said that the state government should allot adequate funds for interlinking of rivers within Tamil Nadu in a phased manner, starting with this budget. This includes the 256km-long canal to link Cauvery river with Vaigai from Mayanoor in Karur district. This should be prioritised considering the immense benefits the mega scheme would help the common man enjoy.
The chamber also pressed for expediting construction of AIIMS that has not seen major development but for construction of the compound wall more than two-and-a-half-years after the foundation stone was laid by the Prime Minister on January 27, 2019. Establishing heavy industries in the Madurai – Tuticorin industrial corridor of excellence to give a boost to small scale industries and employment generation is among their demands.