Integrated bus stand at Panjappur soon a reality

Minister proposes an integrated market for vegetables too at the site

Minister for Municipal Administration K.N. Nehru on Wednesday said that a proposal would be mooted immediately for construction of an integrated bus stand at Panjappur and an integrated market for vegetables at an adjacent location.

As a prelude to the revival of the earlier proposal to set up an integrated bus stand at Panjapur on Tiruchi-Madurai Highway on the outskirts of the city, Mr. Nehru visited a site owned by the Tiruchi City Corporation at Panjappur.

Accompanied by District Collector S. Sivarasu and Corporation Commissioner of Tiruchi S. Sivasubramanian, Mr. Nehru inspected the site and held a detailed discussion with them. Distance between the proposed site and the Central Bus Stand, merits and demerits of the proposed site, the land required for the bus stand, and commercial and practical viabilities of the new bus stand were among the factors discussed. After analysing various aspects of reviving the proposal, which was mooted during the DMK regime in 2006-11, Mr. Nehru visited the Tiruchi Corporation and held another discussion with them.

Speaking to The Hindu Mr. Nehru said that the integrated bus stand was a long-felt demand of the people of Tiruchi. His first priority was to set up the bus stand. Among various options, Panjappur had a number of advantages over others. The Tiruchi City Corporation had about 565 acres at Panjappur and he had asked the officials to process a file to allot 100 acres of land for the bus stand.

The Minister said that his aim was to make the proposed bus stand as a model in terms of passenger amenities, passenger and bus crew friendliness, and accessibility. It would be a state of art bus stand, with a design factoring in the features of some of the best bus stands in the State. As many as five National Highways would have easy access to Panjappur through the semi ring-road. It was an ideal location for all buses bound for Chennai, Kanyakumari, Dindigul, Karur-Coimbatore, Thanjavur, Karaikudi-Ramanathapuram and other destinations.

Mr. Nehru said that he had asked the Collector and the Corporation officials to expedite the process of preparing the proposal, adding he would take up the people’s long-pending demand to the notice of Chief Minister M.K. Stalin immediately.

In addition to the bus stand proposal, Mr. Nehru said that he had asked the officials to explore the possibilities of establishing an integrated market for vegetables, fruits and flowers adjacent to the proposed bus stand. It might require about 40 acres of land. There would be no issues in sourcing the land required for it as the Corporation had sufficient land at Panjappur itself.

Source: Read Full Article