TN CM Stalin writes to Gadkari: Took train due to poor condition of NH-4

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin has written to Union Road Transport and Highways Minister Nitin Gadkari on the poor condition of the National Highway (NH-4) road stretch between Chennai and Ranipet.

Stalin pointed to a request made on the floor of Parliament by Lok Sabha member Dayanidhi Maran recently to him to improve the condition of the road stretch from Chennai to Ranipet.

“I wish to bring to your kind notice the request made by Thiru. Dayanidhi Maran, MP, to yourself on the floor of the Parliament to improve the condition of the existing road stretch from Chennai to Ranipet (NH-4),” Stalin wrote.

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The DMK leader said that due to the bad condition of the road he had to plan his recent visits by train.

“This segment provides vital connectivity from Chennai city and its ports to the industrial clusters in Kanchipuram, Vellore, Ranipet, Hosur and Krishnagiri. The condition of the road is so bad that I had to plan my recent visits to a few districts by train. While the request from our MP was very specific on this important road, we were disappointed with your reply which was very general and non-committal,” Stalin wrote.

He further pointed out, “I also wish to bring to your notice the efforts taken by our Government to support NHAI projects in the State. The Chennai Port to Madurvoyal Elevated Expressway Project has been revived by extending every possible help, including granting exemption from royalty on aggregates.”

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“Similar concessions, which were never given in the past, have been extended to other major NHAI projects. Based on the requests from your side, the validity of soil/gravel permits has been extended from 3 months to 1 year on 9-5-2022. A Special Cell has been constituted in the State Headquarters to monitor land acquisition for highway projects. Permissions from Forest Department are also being reviewed and to the best of my knowledge, no major NHAI project is held up for want of such permissions,” he added.

‘It was unfortunate…’

Further, Stalin wrote that an impression that the Tamil Nadu government was not cooperating with the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has been made in Parliament by a reply of Gadkari which was unfortunate, and asserted that it is not true.

Detailing the Tamil Nadu government’s steps in connection with various projects, Stalin said, “With all such sincere efforts by the government, it was unfortunate that an impression that the State government was not cooperating with NHAI has been underlined in your reply in the Parliament.

“I assure you that it is not true and we have been trying our best to expedite all major infrastructure projects without discriminating between the projects undertaken by the State and Union governments.”

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The Chief Minister referred to the Chennai Port to Maduravoyal Elevated Expressway Project and said it has been revived by extending every possible help, including granting exemption from royalty on aggregates.

ஒன்றிய அரசின் திட்டங்களுக்குத் தேவையான ஒத்துழைப்பினை தமிழ்நாடு அரசு வழங்கும் எனத் தெரிவித்தும் மாண்புமிகு ஒன்றிய அமைச்சர் @nitin_gadkari அவர்களுக்கு மாண்புமிகு முதலமைச்சர் @mkstalin அவர்கள் கடிதம் எழுதியுள்ளார்.

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— CMOTamilNadu (@CMOTamilnadu) February 11, 2023