Commuters in the surrounding farming villages were affected by the poor condition of the stretch, as buses often crashed on the stretch. | Photo credit: SPECIAL ARRANGEMENT
After more than six months of damaged roadway due to underground drainage (UGD) works, the VIT road near Katpadi railway station in Vellore will get a new lease of life as the Vellore Corporation issues a No Objection Certificate (NOC) to the State Highways that maintains the stretch to re-lay the damaged stretch.
Corporation officials said the stretch, which is 2.6 km long and 14 meters wide, was used for laying underground pipelines and constructing shafts for drainage work more than six months ago. “More than 90% of the drainage work on the (VIT Road) stretch has been completed. We have also issued a NOC to the state highway, which maintains the stretch, for shifting,” Vellore Corporation Commissioner R. Lakshmanan told The Hindu.
Corporation officials said the civic body had laid a sewer main in the middle of VIT Road as part of the underground drainage (UGD) system work. A small section of pipeline work is going on at the junction near Chittoor bus stand. The completed part of the section was temporarily leveled for the movement of vehicles by the civic body.
As per the norms, the Corporation has also paid road cutting charges of around ₹ 3 crore to the State Highways for the diversion of VIT Road and several other sections managed by the Roads Department where drainage work has been completed.
Motorists said VIT Road is also a key bus route for city buses operated by the Tamil Nadu State Transport Corporation (TNSTC) and private bus operators, covering remote villages in Katpadi taluk.
Commuters in the surrounding farming villages were affected by the poor condition of the stretch, as buses often crashed on the stretch. “After the drainage work, the alignment of the stretch was uneven, making it risky for road users, including women and the elderly. Ambulances and school vans have difficulty using the stretch because of potholes,” said K. Abirami, a motorist.
Launched in 2019, especially from Phase II, the multi-million dollar drainage project further includes main sewer lines, pumping and transfer stations and sewage treatment plants, covering all 60 wards, which have a population of around eight million within the civic limits. The company is expected to provide individual home connectivity to up to 81,000 connections from January.
Published – 15 Oct 2025 22:33 IST
