Chennai:The Kanchipuram district administration has commenced the work to construct the district bus terminus at Ponnerikarai since the Supreme Court has dismissed a petition filed by a private education trust, claiming that the land belonged to them. The prolonged legal battle in the high court, and later in the Supreme Court, besides the long time taken to identify the land has delayed the project for a decade.
The district administration which had identified the land at Ponnerikarai, outside the town, with easy access to the Bengaluru highway, was unable to proceed with the construction work since the Bakthavatchalam Education Trust filed a case in the Supreme Court against land acquisition and obtained a stay order.
Thousands of people visit Kanchipuram town from all parts of the state and the nation since it has many famous temples and is known for its silk industry. But the existing bus terminus, constructed 60 years ago, does not have enough space and facilities. So, the people have been demanding a new bus terminus for the last 25 years. Besides, the existing bus terminus is located in the centre of the town and the buses have to pass through the city, causing traffic congestion and delay for the passengers.
The traffic congestion is very high during holidays, wedding season and festivals when a large number of people come to the temple town. The government identified the land at Ponnerikarai along the Chennai-Bengaluru national highway and allocated Rs. 40 crore to construct the terminus on 11 acres.
The place is near the national highway and operation of the buses will be easy since they need not enter the congested town roads. The buses could travel easily on the main road, reducing the travel time to state capital Chennai and other places.
Passengers could easily board the buses going to Vellore, Dharmapuri, Hosur and Bengaluru on the national highway. The buses could easily enter the new bus stand due to its proximity to the national highway. The number of buses from Kanchipuram to Vellore, Dharmapuri, Hosur and Bengaluru are very rare and a bus terminus near the national highway will be helpful for the operation of more buses to other places of the state also, like Coimbatore, Erode, Krishnagiri, Tirupur and Dharmapuri.
However, a private trust filed a case against land acquisition and obtained a stay in the Madras high court. However, the government submitted sufficient documents to show that the land belonged to it. The high court upheld the appeal and dismissed the petition against the land acquisition besides ordering the district administration to start the works within 10 days.
However, the trust appealed in the Supreme Court and obtained a stay again, stopping the construction work once again. The Supreme Court dismissed the petition in the second week of August, clearing the decks for the bus terminus construction. The district administration has commenced the work on the terminus and the people who are happy with the Supreme Court judgment, expect the work to be completed at the earliest to bring an end to their problems.
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