Dindigul is a corporation merely in name and though various panchayat wards were incorporated to make the erstwhile municipality a corporation, this change merely remains on paper, charges K. Balabharathi, three-time CPI (M) MLA from Dindigul.
Pinpointing the failure of the previous AIADMK government for the problems that the corporation faces, she says the first step that the erstwhile government should have taken was demarcation of the fledgling corporation into various zones. “Only when this is done can administration and governance reach the people, as officials can visit each zone and reach out to them,” she says.
The corporation has never seen a Commissioner of an IAS rank. If an IAS officer had been given this posting various facilities might have been properly implemented, she adds.
The corporation has not just bad roads but also heaps of garbage dumped in every nook and cranny. This is because of lack of conservancy workers, charges Ms. Balabharathi. Though a corporation, the civic body does not have sufficient staff to administer various projects.
Drinking water shortage has been met to a certain extent, but the dependency on the Cauvery water would not be there if Aathoor dam was properly desilted and a check dam built. The city’s water needs could have been met locally, she adds.
Narrow roads and heavy traffic that each junction in the city sees is compounded by Dindigul bus stand that is located in the midst of narrow lanes. Ms. Balabharathi says this was one issue that had been brought up continuously during the AIADMK period. Though the then government identified land to set up an alternative bus stand on Madurai Bypass Road, nothing was done.
“This issue can be solved if mofussil buses have a bus stand on the highway and only local buses use the existing bus stand in the city. Now, some long-distance buses drop passengers on the four-way. And at night it is taxing for passengers to come to the city,” she says.
Education is another important sector that the AIADMK failed to focus on, she charges. Though there are corporation schools, the infrastructure is deplorable, she adds. The AIADMK government did nothing to bring any smart city projects for the corporation, and none of the corporation schools has smart classrooms. There are no LED streetlights in the city limits, she says.
She is happy that the party has got three seats in this local body election. “Though we don’t have the money and muscle power to buy votes, the people here know that if there is any issue we will be there to fight for them,” she adds.
