Trichy: Trichy Corporation has finally decided to replace faulty slabs of the pedestrian platform in Thennur in the wake of a 46-year-old woman plunging to death after stepping on one such slab of the platform on the Cauvery bridge last month. The civic body will take up the maintenance works across pedestrian platforms in Thennur, Sasthri road and Thillai Nagar main road at an outlay of Rs 9.50 lakh.With the underground drainage system (UGDS) for the city being implemented in a phased manner, the city spread over 167.2 sq kms relies on storm water drainage to avert a deluge-like condition. The open drainage canal, besides serving to drain waste water including sullage on several stretches, is covered with Reinforced Cement Concrete (RCC) slabs which serve as a platform for pedestrians to navigate the arterial roads. However, the pedestrian platforms in many parts of the city including Thillai Nagar, Thennur, Sasthri road, Williams road, Woraiyur and Bharathidasan Salai are in bad shape — broken and with uneven surface — forcing pedestrians to walk over these portions risking their lives.“Periodical maintenance is needed, at least once every six months. Corporation should try to appoint an officer in-charge for every ward to monitor the soundness of such pedestrian slabs,” M Muthuganesan, executive member of Trichy Intra-City Development Endeavours (TIDES), said.Acknowledging the need to overhaul the platforms, Trichy Corporation has said that faulty slabs in ward number 50 and 56 covering major arterial roads including Thillai Nagar, Sasthri road, and Thennur high road would be replaced within next two months. “The maintenance work proposed at Rs 9.50 lakh will be completed within a couple of months of commencement. Gradually, a few more stretches of pedestrian platform will be overhauled,” an official source said. Corporation has floated a tender to identify an appropriate contractor for carrying out the maintenance of pedestrian platform in Thennur and adjacent localities.

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