Urban News

The Hindu    20.09.2010

Gate 2A of Chennai Port likely to be opened by Thursday

Special Correspondent

CHENNAI: A delay in opening up of Gate 2A of Chennai Port Trust off East Kalmandapam Road for vehicular movement has resulted in piling up of laden and empty container vehicles both inside and outside the Port premises.

The Chennai Corporation had stated that the road would be ready for vehicular traffic from September 17. On Saturday only empty container vehicles were allowed to ply to test the road strength. The road was closed for traffic on Sunday to allow procession for the immersion of Lord Ganesha idols into the sea.

“As of now, we can see at least 400-500 empty container laden vehicles stranded inside the Port as well as outside. Besides, vehicles are standing in a long queue along S.N. Chetty Road. Traffic is expected to resume late in the night. However, it might take at least a week for the Port authorities to clear the backlog. This will definitely affect big automobile companies that works just-in-time concept, electronic hardware firms and others,” said a port user.

Currently, Gate 1 handles around 1,300 vehicles of import containers and 1,300 vehicles of export containers. Gate 2A was handling around 1,500 containers per day.

It was closed on June 18 for heavy vehicles due to the caving-in of the road resulting in damage of the 30-year old storm water drain. Chennai Port Trust immediately diverted the container vehicles towards Gate 1.

The 30-feet Kalmandapam Road was reduced to a narrow strip due to caving-in and it took nearly three months for the Corporation officials to rectify the damaged road as it had an archaic storm water drain and the flow of sewage water was continuous.

“A concrete slab was placed a few weeks ago and the road will be levelled soon. It would take another two-three days to black top the road. Till then, we have to use Gate 1,” the Port user said.Port official said that they would open Gate 2A by Thursday and hope to clear the backlog soon.

The Hindu  17.09.2010

‘Local bodies need more revenue from bus stands'

Special Correspondent

COIMBATORE: The State Government should divest the Home Department of the task of fixing parking fee for buses in terminals constructed and maintained by local bodies. This task must be given to the Department of Municipal Administration and Water Supply (MAWS) that has jurisdiction over local bodies such as corporations and municipalities, the Coimbatore Consumer Cause has said.

Arguing the case of the local bodies, secretary of the consumer welfare organisation K. Kathirmathiyon points out that the Coimbatore Corporation had constructed five bus stands, but the parking fee for the buses was still being fixed by the Home Department because the operation of vehicles came under the purview of the Regional Transport Office (RTO), which, in turn, was under the Home Department.

It was not the RTO that was tasked with the physical maintenance of the bus stands. The local bodies had to maintain the structure, provide basic amenities to the passengers and also keep the stands clean. The present fee for various categories of bus stands fetched only measly revenue for the local bodies. This hardly matched the huge expenditure involved in the maintenance of the terminals.

Official sources in the Coimbatore Corporation said the civic body was collecting Rs. 15 a bus a day at A class stands (the one at Singanallur and the Central Bus Stand at Gandhipuram).

An official said the new bus stand on Mettupalayam Road was a B class stand and the fee charged there was Rs. 12. It was Rs. 8 at Ukkadam (C class) and Rs. 5 at the Town Bus Stand at Gandhipuram (D class).

Notified

The fee being collected now was as per what the Government had fixed through the Home Department's order in 2001. It was notified in March 2002 after examining suggestions and objections.

Mr. Kathirmathiyon pointed out that the fee had been revised after more than 10 years. The earlier fee fixed in 1989 was Rs. 4 (A class), Rs. 3 (B class), Rs. 2 (C class) and Rs. 1.50 (D class).

The Government raised these rates by 50 per cent in 1993. But, the local bodies had not collected the fee at the revised rate. And, a Government Order issued in March 2000 cancelled the 1993 order.

This led to the 1989 rates being continued with. The rates were increased by three to four times only in 2003. By then, the local bodies had lost substantial amount of revenue that would have helped them maintain the stands better.

Had the 1993 G.O. been implemented immediately, the local bodies would be making a much higher revenue than what they were getting now from the bus stands. The non-implementation and its withdrawal had a cascading effect on the revenue.

Mr. Kathirmathiyon said only the local bodies were in a position to know what fee rate could be viable for the upkeep of the terminals.