In Vellore constituency, a DMK stronghold, the Smart Cities mission was launched in 2018, which includes features such as laying asphalt roads, underground sewerage system and paved footpaths. | Photo credit: VENKATACHALAPATHY C
The Vellore Corporation’s ambitious multi-crore Smart Cities Mission project remains unpopular with voters due to delayed work by the civic body since the launch of the project in 2018.
Laying of asphalt roads, underground drainage system, independent conduits for utility cables including internet and telephone services, water pipelines, paved footpath with steel railings are some of the features of the project estimated to cost around ₹3,500 crore.
“Re-laying of damaged sections due to underground drainage works without milling off the worn bituminous layer only brought the houses down a few centimeters along these sections, exposing the buildings to waterlogging during the monsoon,” said S. Chandrasekar, a long-time resident.
Mr. Chandrasekar resides in Sathuvacari, an upscale residential area on the Chennai – Bengaluru National Highway (NH 48), which is part of a civic association. Many houses in Gandhi Nagar in Sathuvacari, Double Road, Regional Transport Office (RTO) Road, off the national highway, are located several feet lower than the existing road level.
“The work done under the Smart Cities Mission has siphoned off taxpayers’ money. Drainage connections to households have not been started even though the project started almost a decade ago,” said JC Kumareswaran, president of Sathuvacari Consumer Welfare Association.
Another major challenge vexing voters in the area is the stray cattle and dogs in the area. Many residents within civil restrictions are dairy farmers. Residents accuse dairy owners of leaving cattle on the street to feed before driving the animals back into the cow shed in the evening. “Fines and confiscation of stray cattle have not ended the menace as we still face the danger of stray cattle running across key stretches in the city. The civic body should find a permanent solution,” said K. Mahalakshmi, another resident.
Incumbent DMK MLA P. Karthikeyan was elected twice from the Vellore seat in the 2016 and 2021 assembly elections. He was also the first chairman of the Vellore Corporation when the civic body was elevated from a municipality in 2008. The constituency has remained a stronghold for the DMK, which has sent MLAs out of the seat at least six times since 1952, when the first assembly elections were held for the constituency.
Nevertheless, the voters are dissatisfied with the progress of work within the Smart Cities Mission project. Another problem for voters, especially women and the elderly, is the violation of road traffic rules by motorists in key sections of the council’s constituency. Residents said that regular police patrols within the constituency had not been done for a long time.
As Karthikeyan was re-announced as the DMK candidate for the constituency by party president and Chief Minister MK Stalin on Saturday, key civic woes of the electorate will decide whether Mr Karthikeyan will be re-elected from the constituency for a third term.
Published – 28 March 2026 21:51 IST
