Deplorable subway stinks

CHENNAI: The seeming reluctance of authorities to take action on complaints from pedestrians on the deplorable plight of the footpath and subway near the Chennai Central Railway Station has led to continued inconvenience and danger to travellers in the area.The footpath and subway happen to be the main commuting point for hundreds of passengers from North Chennai who visit the Central Railway Station. Ironically, close to 30 metres of footpath on either side of Wall Tax Road were cordoned off with iron gates preventing the public from using it.Hundreds of people using the road have been forced to walk on the main road, causing traffic problems on Wall Tax Road. “Peak-hour commuters, who rush to the station with huge luggage, face a lot of problems,” said Ramesh, a local businessman.The road is filled with auto-rickshaws, while the commuters have to walk on the carriageway to reach the station. “So many passengers have missed their trains due to the chaos on the road,” said the locals.The barricaded pavements are full of materials dumped by the roadside dwellers and hawkers. The situation inside the subway is pathetic. While a few children were found sleeping in the middle of the subway, sewage from pipes flooded the subway, spreading a foul stench. The road space adjacent the subway was also found to be flooded with the sewage water.Civic officials looking after the subway pleaded helplessness, as they blamed the pavement dwellers for this menace. "Despite having been warned several times, the dwellers don’t listen," the official complained.EV Mohan, a resident of Poonga Nagar, had taken up the issue with the local police, highway authorities, officials of the railway station, Chennai Corporation, and even with Central Chennai MP Dayanidhi Maran. But so far, there has been no response from the authorities.“I have written a number of letters to the authorities, but each department is shifting the blame on the other and trying to escape from the responsibility. Highways authorities have spent `48 lakh to build this subway and the footpath, but they are least bothered about maintaining it,” said Mohan.“Whenever Corporation Mayor M Subramanian visits this place for inspection, they will clean the place to create a good impression, but within the next few hours, things will back to as it was,” he claimed.