After the facelift it got in the run-up to the World Tamil Conference in 1995, the historic city of Thanjavur has been waiting for a development push. In recent years, the civic infrastructure has struggled to match the city’s stature as an important tourist destination housing the UNESCO World Heritage Site of Sri Brihadisvara Temple.
As the first DMK Mayor, Sun. Ramanathan, 45, is conscious of the gaps in infrastructure and the task at hand. “There is an enormous work to do,” he concedes. Having already served as a corporator for two terms, initially as a municipal councillor in 2006 and later as a councillor of the corporation, he is well aware of the civic problems.
“First, roads are in pretty bad shape after being dug up for building underground sewer lines and replacing the drinking water pipelines. I plan to relay all the roads in two years, if not within a year,” says Mr. Ramanathan, who took to politics as a student activist in his college days in 1993 and has since risen through the ranks to become the DMK’s youth wing secretary of Thanjavur central district.
The next task would be to improve solid waste management with more garbage bins across the town and augmenting the sanitation workforce. “We have already hired 273 self-help group members as temporary sanitary workers; if necessary, we will go for more,” he says.
He plans to install a chain of surveillance cameras across the city and use them to serve his ends, too. “I plan to place the cameras facing the roads with the garbage bins at forefront; this will help us keep an eye on accumulation/overflow of garbage and ensure their prompt removal,” he says. Implementing a ‘waste-to-energy’ project and establishing a modern sewage treatment plant, which would enable recycled sewage to be used for farming, and producing bio-manure from bio-degradable waste are among his other plans to improve solid waste management.
Tanks and ponds would be rejuvenated by clearing silt and activating the inlet channels. A mass greening drive would be initiated with the support of voluntary organisations.
Giving a push to the ongoing projects under the National Smart Cities Mission, other than the ones which have run into litigation, is high among his priorities. “Some of the projects have been moving at a snail’s pace. I have already held a meeting with our officials and asked them to complete them by the end of this financial year. I shall review their progress every month,” he says.
Establishing public parks and small libraries in each of the 51 wards; building a lodging house for tourists; and putting up escalators at a couple of congested road-crossings near the Big Temple and the Old Bus Stand form part of his wish list.
“My vision is to create modern civic infrastructure even while retaining the heritage character of the city and make the Thanjavur corporation a model in the State,” he says.
