Abstract
Elevated Expressway - NHDP Phase VII - Construction of Elevated Expressway from Chennai Port to Maduravoyal - Sharing of cost of Land Acquisition and Rehabilitation & Resettlement - Shifting of utilities - State Government's support - Orders issued.
--------------------------------------------------------------------------Highways (HV2) Department
G.O.(Ms).No.63 Dated 07.03.2008
Read:
1. G.O.(Ms).No.199, Public Works Department, dated 22-6-2007.
2. From the Chairman, Chennai Port Trust, D.O.Lr. No.MP/JDC/1203/05/E,
dated 5-1-2008.
-------
ORDER:
The Government of India, Ministry of Shipping, Road Transport and Highways
has proposed to construct an Elevated Expressway from Chennai Port to Maduravoyal
and included it in the NHDP Phase-VII. This Elevated Expressway was originally
proposed to be constructed from Chennai Port to Maduravoyal along the banks of
Cooum River. The Government have also in the G.O read above, granted in principal
approval to the NHAI for using one side of the Cooum River as per site conditions for
construction of the Elevated Expressway subject to certain conditions. But now, the
NHAI has proposed to change the alignment in such a way that the Elevated
Expressway would pass-over the existing Poonamallee High Road from Maduravoyal to
Koyambedu and then go along Cooum River. The estimates of the project have been
worked out at Rs.1468 crores including the R&R and LA components amounting to
Rs.345 crores. The NHAI has therefore requested to issue an appropriate amendment
to the G.O read above. The Chairman, Chennai Port Trust has requested the consent
of the State Government to share the cost of Land Acquisition and R&R on the basis of
50:50 between Chennai Port Trust and Government of Tamil Nadu. He has also
requested the State Government's support for shifting of utilities, erection of
encroachments etc.
2. The Government have examined the request of NHAI and the Chairman,
Chennai Port Trust in greater detail and decided to extend full support to the NHAI and
Chennai Port Trust for the implementation of the Elevated Expressway project between
Chennai Port and Maduravoyal and issue the following orders:-
I. G.O.(Ms).No.199, Public Works Department, dated 22-6-2007 be
amended suitably to permit the revised alignment of Elevated
Expressway and orders be issued separately by the Public Works
Department.
II. The District Collectors of Chennai and Thiruvallur will acquire the private
land required for the project including the lands which may be needed for
R&R purposes, based on the request from Tamil Nadu Slum Clearance
Board through the process of negotiation or by acquisition after getting
land plan schedule from the NHAI.
III. The Government of Tamil Nadu will meet 50% of cost of LA and R&R
subject to condition that Chennai Port Trust would initially pay the entire
cost of LA and R&R and get 50% of the cost reimbursed from Government
of Tamil Nadu and that 50% of R&R cost being the State share would be
availed from JNNURM.
IV. The District Collectors of Chennai and Thiruvallur with the assistance of
PWD and Tamil Nadu Slum Clearance Board will carry out enumeration
and documentation of the project affected families, (PAF) structures etc.
for R&R purposes and complete the same expeditiously. The TNSCB
should simultaneously prepare a plan for the rehabilitation and
resettlements of the project affected families so that the project
implementation is not hindered in any manner.
V. The TNSCB will be the nodal agency from the State Government to coordinate
with NHAI for completing the R&R work with a definite time
frame.
VI. Tamil Nadu Pollution Control Board will consider and issue clearance
under the air and water acts on receipt of application from [The Project
Director (Port Connectivity), NHAI, Chennai or agency concerned.
VII. The CMWSS board and TNEB will take immediate action for shifting of
water lines and electrical utilities on receipt of proposals from National
Highways Authority of India subject to usual conditions.
VIII. The CMDA will issue NOC for this project after taking into account the
alignment of Metro Rail Project.
IX. The Project Director (Port Connectivity), NHAI, Chennai will co-ordinate
the various activities including providing details of alignment at various
locations to the concerned departments or agencies.
3. The Chairman, Chennai Port Trust and the Project Director (Port Connectivity), NHAI, Chennai are requested to send the proposals with all relevant details to the concerned Government Departments/Agencies urgently for necessary clearance and expedite the implementation of the project.
4. This order issues with the concurrence of the Finance Department vide its
U.O. No. 38/SS (AP)/08, dated 06.03.2008.

http://www.tn.gov.in/gorders/highways/hway_e_63_2008.pdf

The above news showes that TN govt. has given GO on 7/3/08

^^Cool. What is the proposed length of the xway?

Crossposting from chennai flyover projects
http://www.chennaionline.com/colnews/newsitem.asp?NEWSID=%7B9AF0D27F-D9DC-4B54-9497-82115BD7CDCB%7D&CATEGORYNAME=CHN

Chennai, May 10 Union Shipping Minister T R Baalu today said the foundation stone for the Rs 1,500 crore elevated expressway from War Memorial to Maduravoyal will be laid soon

Talking to newspersons here after distributing free pattas, he said the foundation stone for the project will be laid very soon after consulting Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi.

He said the Centre has already given clearance for the War Memorial-Maduravoyal Expressway, he said adding the four-lane expressway covering a distance of 18.4 km would facilitate movement of container lorries.

Mr Balu also informed the work on Kathipara Bridge would be fully completed very soon easing traffic congestion.

^^

Good news.

But why 4 lanes only?

6 lanes roads are needed for Chennai city.

^^

Good news.

But why 4 lanes only?

6 lanes roads are needed for Chennai city.

Technically, it's 8/10 lanes, right? 4 along the expressway + 4/6 lanes along Poonamallee High Road.

Will it be a Longest Elevated Bridge in India?.. or do we have any other in India?

Chennai Port Trust is all set to launch seven major projects estimated to cost around Rs 5,500 crore. The new proposals are Chennai Mega Terminal, dedicated expressway from Chennai Port to Maduravoyal on NH-4, second container terminal, development of a mega car parking terminal, deepening channels, setting up wind mill farm, and port modernisation.
Chennai Mega Terminal, estimated to cost Rs 3,105 crore, will be the first deepwater terminal of its kind in the country. The centre has given the "in principle" approval for the terminal. "The proposed terminal with a rated capacity of 5 million TEUs per annum is likely to reach operational status by 2012-2013," a port spokesperson said. The infrastructure of the terminal will be developed north of existing Bharathi Dock with two new breakwaters at a total length 4 km and continuous quay length with 18 m alongside depth. The total basin area will be 300 hectares with a back up area 100 hectares. The terminal once complete can handle ultra large container ships of capacity over 15,000 TEUs and length 400 m. The project proposed to be developed on BOT basis with cost of dredging, reclamation and navigational aids to be borne by Chennai Port. The breakwater extension from existing outer arm can be used to develop deep draft oil berth for handling VLCCs in future.
The dedicated elevated express way from Chennai to Maduravoyal on NH-4, 18.3-km long stretch, to be built at a cost of Rs 1,468 crore will connect Chennai port-NH-Bangalore and the industrial hub of Sriperumbudur. The project work is likely to complete in mid-2011.
The second container terminal at EQ and SQ III, estimated to cost Rs 495 crore, will have a backup area of 35 hectares (including 7.8 hectares to be reclaimed by ChPT) with a capacity of 1 million TEUs per annum. The license has been awarded to PSA-Sical consortium. The operator has to construct 830 m long berth with 15.5 m alongside depth. The revenue share offered 45.801 per cent and a 30-year license agreement has been signed in March last year. The project will become operational from April 2009.
The stage-I work for realigning rail and road network (estimated to cost Rs 40 crore) inside the harbour as part of the modernisation of the port is in progress. The contract to award for mechanised conveyor system (estimated to cost Rs 43 crore) is in progress. Rites Ltd has been awarded the contract to prepare the railway master plan for the port. The Rs 200-crore port modernisation is expected to complete by 2009-2010.
Moreover, Chennai Port Trust has decided to deepen the channels, basins and berths at an estimated cost of Rs 143 crore, by 2011-12.

http://www.projectsmonitor.com/detailnews.asp?newsid=15901

http://news.webindia123.com/news/Articles/India/20080315/910235.html

March 11 2008, http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2008/03/12/stories/2008031252031000.htm
Chennai, March 11 The Rs 1,468-crore Elevated Expressway project on the banks of River Coovum from Chennai port to Maduravoyal got a major boost with the Tami Nadu Government agreeing to share 50 per cent of the costs of land acquisition and rehabilitation and resettlement (R&R).

The BOT (build, own and transfer) operator will bring in 50 per cent of the total project cost; the Tamil Nadu Government and the Chennai Port Trust will equally share the Rs 345-crore on land acquisition and R&R of people located along the Coovum River. The National Highways Authority of India will raise the rest through viability cap funding, according to sources.

The investment of the Tamil Nadu Government is subject to condition that the Chennai port will initially pay the entire cost of the land acquisition and R&R. Half the cost would be reimbursed by the TN Government, 50 per cent of which the Government will get back from the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission, according to a Government order of the State Government.

The project is envisaged as the “port connectivity” programme under the National Highways Development Programme.

The expressway will start from gate No 10 of the port near War Memorial, run along the banks of the River Coovum for the entire 17.5 km to west end of the city.

In June 2007, the State Government gave its ‘in principle’ approval to the National Highways Authority of India for the Elevated Expressway.

Dense settlements


A considerable length of the Coovum River has dense settlements in the form of ‘Kutcha (around 2,100), Semi pucca (1,400) and Pucca’ buildings (1,700). Most of them are settlement residential units and slums, it is learnt.

The Tamil Nadu Slum Clearance Board will be the nodal agency from the State Government to coordinate with NHAI for completing the R&R work with a definite time frame. The Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority will issue no-objection certificate after taking into the account the alignment of the Metro rail project, the order says.

April 17 2008, Source:http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2008/04/18/stories/2008041851422100.htm
The Tamil Nadu Government has accepted the proposal of the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) for a change in the alignment of the proposed elevated expressway connecting Chennai Port with Maduravoyal.

The Government has also agreed to meet 50 per cent of the cost of Rehabilitation and Resettlement (R&R) and Land Acquisition (LA) subject to the condition that the Chennai Port Trust should initially meet the entire cost of LA and R&R estimated to be Rs 345 crore and get the Government’s share reimbursed.

A Government Order issued by Mr K. Allaudin, Secretary, Highways Department of Tamil Nadu, said the elevated expressway from Chennai Port to Maduravoyal, proposed by the Ministry of Shipping, Road Transport and Highways of the Central Government, was originally planned to be built along the banks of the Cooum River. The State had granted in-principle approval to NHAI to use one side of the Cooum, according to site conditions for the construction of the elevated expressway subject to certain conditions.

Now, NHAI has proposed to change the alignment in such a way that it would pass over the existing Poonamallee High Road from Maduravoyal to Koyambedu and then go along the Cooum River. The project is estimated to cost Rs 1,468 crore.

^^Cool. What is the proposed length of the xway?
15-km-long Elevated Expressway

March 14 2008, Source:http://www.hindu.com/2008/03/14/stories/2008031459360300.htm
The 15-km-long Elevated Expressway from Chennai Port to Maduravoyal will pass through the Poonamallee High Road from Maduravoyal to Koyambedu and go along the left bank of the Cooum.

The elevated corridor will come up on the central portion of the Poonamallee High Road between Maduravoyal and Koyambedu.

An order to this effect was issued by the Highways Department about a week ago following the instructions of Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi, according to an official release.

Originally, it was proposed to construct the expressway along the banks of the river.

Rs.1,468 crore-project


Estimated to cost Rs.1,468 crore, the project would be implemented by the Central and State governments under the National Highway Development Programme Phase VII.

Aimed at providing port connectivity, the project has been mooted by the Chennai Port Trust and the National Highways Authority of India.

It involves the components of rehabilitation and resettlement (R&R) and land acquisition, which are estimated to cost Rs. 345 crore.

The order also said that the State government would meet 50 per cent of the cost of land acquisition and R&R, subject to the condition that the Chennai Port Trust would initially pay the entire cost and get 50 per cent of the cost reimbursed by the State government and the other half would be availed from the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission.

Rehabilitation


The Chennai and Tiruvallur District Collectors, assisted by the Public Works Department and the Slum Clearance Board, would carry out enumeration and documentation of the project-affected families. The Board would simultaneously prepare a plan for the rehabilitation and resettlement of the families. It would be the nodal agency to coordinate with the NHAI for completing the R&R work within a definite timeframe.

The Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority would issue a no-objection certificate for the project after taking into account the alignment of Metro Rail Project.

15-km-long Elevated Expressway

No.. it is 18.3 Kms long stretch.

Chennai Port Trust is all set to launch seven major projects estimated to cost around Rs 5,500 crore. The new proposals are Chennai Mega Terminal, dedicated expressway from Chennai Port to Maduravoyal on NH-4, second container terminal, development of a mega car parking terminal, deepening channels, setting up wind mill farm, and port modernisation.
Chennai Mega Terminal, estimated to cost Rs 3,105 crore, will be the first deepwater terminal of its kind in the country. The centre has given the "in principle" approval for the terminal. "The proposed terminal with a rated capacity of 5 million TEUs per annum is likely to reach operational status by 2012-2013," a port spokesperson said. The infrastructure of the terminal will be developed north of existing Bharathi Dock with two new breakwaters at a total length 4 km and continuous quay length with 18 m alongside depth. The total basin area will be 300 hectares with a back up area 100 hectares. The terminal once complete can handle ultra large container ships of capacity over 15,000 TEUs and length 400 m. The project proposed to be developed on BOT basis with cost of dredging, reclamation and navigational aids to be borne by Chennai Port. The breakwater extension from existing outer arm can be used to develop deep draft oil berth for handling VLCCs in future.
The dedicated elevated express way from Chennai to Maduravoyal on NH-4, 18.3-km long stretch, to be built at a cost of Rs 1,468 crore will connect Chennai port-NH-Bangalore and the industrial hub of Sriperumbudur. The project work is likely to complete in mid-2011.
The second container terminal at EQ and SQ III, estimated to cost Rs 495 crore, will have a backup area of 35 hectares (including 7.8 hectares to be reclaimed by ChPT) with a capacity of 1 million TEUs per annum. The license has been awarded to PSA-Sical consortium. The operator has to construct 830 m long berth with 15.5 m alongside depth. The revenue share offered 45.801 per cent and a 30-year license agreement has been signed in March last year. The project will become operational from April 2009.
The stage-I work for realigning rail and road network (estimated to cost Rs 40 crore) inside the harbour as part of the modernisation of the port is in progress. The contract to award for mechanised conveyor system (estimated to cost Rs 43 crore) is in progress. Rites Ltd has been awarded the contract to prepare the railway master plan for the port. The Rs 200-crore port modernisation is expected to complete by 2009-2010.
Moreover, Chennai Port Trust has decided to deepen the channels, basins and berths at an estimated cost of Rs 143 crore, by 2011-12.

http://www.projectsmonitor.com/detailnews.asp?newsid=15901
Is this being exclusively built for the sake of connectivity to the proposed Greenfield airport?

Is this being exclusively built for the sake of connectivity to the proposed Greenfield airport?

No, connecting the port to Maduravoyal would help in connnecting to all major highways in Chennai.Maduravoyal is the point where all 3 major highways- The one to Tiruchy& Madurai, the one to Calcutta(GQ) (after chennai bypass is complete)and the one to Bangalore meet.So connecting the port to Maduravoyal would facilitate movement of cargo vehicles..It would also reduce the congestion at North Chennai since the cargo vehicles would no longer be using the stretch in north chennai.

it will also be useful for the industries at sriperumbudur to facilitate easier shipment. Hyundai faced a curfew during day time which slowed down the process of moving cars from its plant to the port. This resulted in the increase in the no of days a car spent at chennai port and thus lead to poor efficiency. Now with Ford and Renault Nissan also willing to use the port's car terminal free movement of container lorries and trailers is necessay for clearing the cargo at the port. So hte eleveted expressway has been proposed With the recent declaration of setting up a dry port at Sriperumbudur i expect the elevated highway to be used exclusively by heavy vehicles while the actual poonmallee high road can be used by other vehicles.

Will it be a Longest Elevated Bridge in India?.. or do we have any other in India?

One under implementation between Electronic City and Bangalore Silk board on Hosur Road, not sure about the length though, but approx 10KM's

One under implementation between Electronic City and Bangalore Silk board on Hosur Road, not sure about the length though, but approx 10KM's

So this is 18.3Km.. longest in India??

One under implementation between Electronic City and Bangalore Silk board on Hosur Road, not sure about the length though, but approx 10KM's

It's 9 km;

So this is 18.3Km.. longest in India??

Probably:cheers:

Traffic blocked for heavy vehicle movement on PH road. Signal boards removed to ease the movement of these vehicles.

http://dkn.dinakaran.co.in/1572008/e1-2-2cni.jpg

What the expected year of completion of this elevated port expressway project?

This will bring an end to above problem for the PH road!

^^Elevated corridor to pass through Poonamallee road

State to meet 50 per cent of the cost of land acquisition

CHENNAI: The 15-km-long Elevated Expressway from Chennai Port to Maduravoyal will pass through the Poonamallee High Road from Maduravoyal to Koyambedu and go along the left bank of the Cooum.

The elevated corridor will come up on the central portion of the Poonamallee High Road between Maduravoyal and Koyambedu.

An order to this effect was issued by the Highways Department about a week ago following the instructions of Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi, according to an official release.

Originally, it was proposed to construct the expressway along the banks of the river.

Rs.1,468 crore-project


Estimated to cost Rs.1,468 crore, the project would be implemented by the Central and State governments under the National Highway Development Programme Phase VII.

Aimed at providing port connectivity, the project has been mooted by the Chennai Port Trust and the National Highways Authority of India.

It involves the components of rehabilitation and resettlement (R&R) and land acquisition, which are estimated to cost Rs. 345 crore.

The order also said that the State government would meet 50 per cent of the cost of land acquisition and R&R, subject to the condition that the Chennai Port Trust would initially pay the entire cost and get 50 per cent of the cost reimbursed by the State government and the other half would be availed from the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission.

Rehabilitation


The Chennai and Tiruvallur District Collectors, assisted by the Public Works Department and the Slum Clearance Board, would carry out enumeration and documentation of the project-affected families. The Board would simultaneously prepare a plan for the rehabilitation and resettlement of the families. It would be the nodal agency to coordinate with the NHAI for completing the R&R work within a definite timeframe.

The Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority would issue a no-objection certificate for the project after taking into account the alignment of Metro Rail Project.

Source: The Hindu dated Friday, March 14, 2008,
http://www.thehindu.com/2008/03/14/stories/2008031459360300.htm

Per the above news, the date of commencement of the project (and, hence, the date of completion) solely depends on the finalization of the Metro Rail Project.:dunno:

guys over here is a thread on Indian Expressways. Please contribute news articles and pictures over there. You may carry on your discussion specific to chennai elevated expressway over here itself.

The thread below is a repository for pictures and news item related to Indian expressways in general.

http://www.skyscrapercity.com/showthread.php?t=663116

Any idea how it might look like?...I mean has someone got the animated view of it?

^^Few years ago (at the time of its proposal) it was shown on the television. No idea whether it is available on the Internet.

CHENNAI: The state government on Tuesday gave the go-ahead for two more elevated expressways in the city -- one over the Adyar creek, and another along the Cooum river for port connectivity.

...

He also asked them to co-ordinate with the National Highways Authority of India to speed up the Rs 1468-crore elevated expressway project connecting Maduravoyal to the Chennai Port along the Cooum River. The chief minister asked them to speed up the acquisition of land for this project, which would cover 24.31 km. It would heavily cut down the travel time and fuel costs for heavy vehicles headed to the Chennai port. The project is taken up under the "port connectivity" programme under the National Highways Development Programme.

The BOT operator will bring in 50 percent of the total cost. The state government and the Chennai Port Trust have already decided to share the cost of land acquisition and resettlement and rehabilitation of people located along the Coovum River.

As the density of settlements in the form of kutcha, semi-pucca and pucca buildings, a mix of slums and resettlement units, the Tamil Nadu Slum Clearance Board will be the nodal agency for the State Government to co-ordinate with the NHAI for completing the resettlement work within a time period.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/2955993.cms

This news article from the Times of India mentions the length as 24.31 km (as against the 18.3 km mentioned in this thread). Has the length been extended?

^^its possible some parts are along the banks of the cooum rather than on the median of pml high rd, this could account for the increase

^^its possible some parts are along the banks of the cooum rather than on the median of pml high rd, this could account for the increase

Cooum river does not run in a straight line between Anna Nagar and central station. Elevated road along the PH Road median would be a better idea practically. Intersections planning is a challenge. SSC fORUM HAS GIVEN ENOUGH IDEAS FOR THE SAME.

Is this elevated expressway going to run the entire course along the Cooum river ? Meaning, with the foundations and column resting on the river bed or on it banks ? Have they studied the impact on the river habitat eco-system -- however tiny that is !!

^^Well! I wouldn't like to have another MRTS-kind watercourse-affecting project again. Wish the elevated expressway snakes through alongside the river but not on the riverbed itself.:)

Posted by Subra

Chennai port to Maduravoyal project approved

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/...ow/3353285.cms

NEW DELHI: A committee on public private partnership on Monday cleared as many as 10 road projects worth an estimated Rs 10,507 crore.

The Public-Private Partnership Appraisal Committee (PPPAC), chaired by Finance Secretary D Subbarao, involves four-laning of national highways, an official statement said.

Four-lane elevated road project also includes work on the Chennai port to Maduravoyal (NH4)in Tamil Nadu at an estimated cost of Rs 1,345.14 crore has also been cleared

^^Great :)

^^ this is going to be one huge project once it gets underway.

can't wait!!

I really doubt on the alignment parellel to nelson manickam road. Between maduravoyal and Aminjikkarai everything is easy and term it as cakewalk. As per plan the road will come on the median of PH road between Maduravoyal and Koyambedu and thereon on the Northern bank of the Cooum between Koyambedu and Aminjikkarai.

Beyond that how the alignment can proceed. Technically there are lot of hurdles. The river zig zags after that and to touch harrington road it needs to take atleast twice the distance of road(by river alignment). Once again near ethiraj college it needs a big zig zag to follow with the river alignment which can be avoided by another road on median of ethiraj salai. If it follows south cooum road, it does clash with the metro alignment but again metro is underground and on west bank(So it needs to be elevated on east bank here). Again from aditanar salai to Island grounds if we needs to follow river alignment its tedious and alignment can be on median on Mount road(It can save 2 kms but will clash with the MRTS alignment)... So whats the Plan

Technically I found following issues which may crop up during the plans and its not easy and may take more time

1. Alignment on Aminjikkarai and Harrington road (Not possible to follow river alignment as its more as well as limited space on both sides of river. Near chetput signal you can see that there is no Banks at all on both sides of the river and being peak city area you can get that easily)

2. Unnecessary detour from Greams road Junction to touch Ethiraj salai
3. Clash with the metro alignment in south cooum road but again metro is underground
4. Unnecessary detour from aditanar salai to Island grounds and may clash with the MRTS alignment)

As we get near the city it becomes tough.. It may take atleast 7 years from now

^^Per your imagination, I can visualize the expressway being too curvy towards the port (after Aminjikarai), in which case the expressway would hardly serve its original purpose, i.e., transportation of large containers. A more linear alignment would ease the traffic movement. Is there any map showing the proposed alignment?

^^Per your imagination, I can visualize the expressway being too curvy towards the port (after Aminjikarai), in which case the expressway would hardly serve its original purpose, i.e., transportation of large containers. A more linear alignment would ease the traffic movement. Is there any map showing the proposed alignment?

such curves can be smoothened to ensure traffic movement. that is not the issue. cooum meanders all over the place. so it would be very long. and also city traffic may not use this at all if it keeps turning. are any entry/exits even planned?

^^You mean, in the middle of the alignment, by means of ramps or things like that?

Port-Maduravoyal elevated corridor gets nod

CHENNAI: The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) has secured in-principle clearance from the Central government’s Public Private Partnership Approval Committee (PPPAC) for the Rs.1,468-crore elevated corridor from the Chennai Port to Maduravoyal.

The NHAI will float bids for execution after obtaining Planning Commission approval. An official of the NHAI says the go-ahead is expected in a month’s time. A senior State Government official describes the PPP approval committee’s clearance as a “major step forward.”

When NHAI chairman Gokul Ram was in the city recently, he sought the help of the State Highways Department to expedite the works relating to land acquisition and resettlement and rehabilitation (R&R).

To be implemented by the Central and State governments under the National Highway Development Programme Phase VII, the project is aimed at improving port connectivity. Mooted by the Chennai Port Trust and the NHAI, the proposed road links Chennai Port Trust Gate No.10 with Maduravoyal. The proposed road between Chennai Port and Koyambedu will go along the Cooum river bank. The stretch from Koyambedu to Maduravoyal will come up on the central portion of Poonamallee High Road.

The project involves R&R and land acquisition components, which are estimated to cost Rs. 345 crore. The State government would meet 50 per cent of the cost of land acquisition and R&R, subject to the condition that the Chennai Port Trust would initially pay the entire cost. The State Government’s share would be met through the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM). The government issued an order to this effect in March.

The government official explains that the corridor would help in speedier movement of heavy vehicles bound for the Chennai Port, lessening the traffic on Poonamallee High Road.

http://www.hindu.com/2008/08/13/stories/2008081355990100.htm

Cross-posting from the Chennai Flyover Projects thread

Not sure if this really belongs here... but here is the link in question:

http://nhai.org/Doc/23Aug08/NIT.pdf

^^ if they've floated tenders, what does that really mean in terms of progress of the project?

when do you all feel actual construction will start? shouldn't be too long, right?

^^ if they've floated tenders, what does that really mean in terms of progress of the project?

when do you all feel actual construction will start? shouldn't be too long, right?

Not so soon. They have a regimented discipline in following
the patented pattern

1) float tender
2) approve the bidder who greases the most palms
3) divvy up the budget money
4) construct if money left

:banana:

^^:lol:

^^ lol...

but no, seriously - what kind of timeframes are we looking at now?

^^ if they've floated tenders, what does that really mean in terms of progress of the project?

when do you all feel actual construction will start? shouldn't be too long, right?

No, they have not invited to bid for the project yet. They have only invited application for pre-qualification of bidders and the results will be announced by November i think.

Lets assume if they float the tender in January, the PFI tendering process should take atleast 12 months or probably more and then another 3-4 months for validating of bids. We can expect the work to start sometime in 2010.

Total length - 19 km
Name of the Pre-Qualified Applicants
GMR Infrastructure Limited
IVRCL Infrastructure and Projects Limited
Soma Enterprise Limited
Maytas Infra Assets Limited
Navayuga Engg. Co. Ltd.
IL&FS Transportation Networks Limited
Navinya & Atlantia S.p.A Consortium -
Larsen & Toubro Limited
DSC Limited
KMC -B&B (Consortium)
Gammon Infrastructure Projects Limited
GVK Developmental Projects Private Limited
ITD Cementation India Limited
SEW Infrastrucutre Limited
CINTRA -SPCL Consortium
Constructora San Jose -Parsvnath Developers Ltd Consortium
HCC -John Laing Consortium
Nagarjuna Construction Company Limited
Reliance Infrastructure Limited

Submission of RFP by 28.11.08
Source: NHAI website

Any news on Elevated Expressway from Sriperumbudur to Madhuravoyal...
I guess it was proposed along with the Sriperumbudur dry port if i'm not wrong?!?

^^ the elevated expy's only from Port to Maduravoyal, and not Sriperumbudur afaik...

oops.. i finally managed to trace the source...
here it is... Balu has asked to conduct feasibility study for tat...
Regarding construction of a Dry Port (Container Freight Station) at Sriperumbudur, the Minister directed the officials to get in touch with the State Government for allotment of 100 acres of land and also get the feasibility study done for construction of elevated corridor from Maduravoyal to proposed dry port in order to have a seamless movement of cargo.
http://www.thaindian.com/newsportal/india-news/baalu-reviews-the-performance-of-chennai-port-trust_10064416.html

^^Great Kewl Batty. That's quite informative. :)

Let's keep our fingers crossed.

Not the final qualification..but still some news :-)

http://www.business-standard.com/india/storypage.php?tp=on&autono=49672

Parsvnath Developers today announced a joint venture consortium with the Spanish infrastructure company Constructora San Jose.

The consortium has submitted a Request for Qualification to National Highways Authority of India and has qualified to submit a financial bid for construction of an elevated expressway in the National Highway 4, a press release said.

The contract is valued at Rs 1,220 crore and involves construction, engineering, designing, financing, procurement and operation of a 19 km long four-lane elevated expressway on National Highway 4 between Chennai Port and Maduravoyal in Tamil Nadu.

List of Proposed Elevated Expressways
1. Light House - Kottivakkam
2. Vadapalani - Porur
3. Parrys Corner - Toll Gate
4. Toll Gate - Tiruvottiyur
5. Along Kamarajar Salai (Beach Road)
6. Along Rajaji Salai
7. Along IT corridor
8. Along Arcot Road
9. Aminjikarai - Sterling Road
10. Kathipara - Tambaram

Freight Corridors
1. Chennai Port to Maduravoyal (u/c)
2. Ennore Port to Thatchur
3. Ennore Port to Chennai Port


Only this forum I found this can fit in... Mabbe the elevated Expressways can have a separate forum in sometime..

^^Are these apart from the so-called circular corridor?

^^Are these apart from the so-called circular corridor?

Not sure.. But Circular Corridors were proposed mainly for BRTS. Guess this must be different from that. Someone please clarify it!

^^Btw, do you have the source for those proposed elevated expressways, Kewl Batty?

^^Btw, do you have the source for those proposed elevated expressways, Kewl Batty?

I'm juzz looking out for the source, i read this somewhere along with the monorail project and copied it to a text file (forgot to add the source). will post it as soon as I lay my hands on it.

...

^^Thank you Kewl Batty. I will search for it too... :)

Multi-crore infrastructure plan
3 Sep 2008, 0547 hrs IST, M Gunasekaran, TNN

CHENNAI: The landscape of Chennai is all set for a metamorphosis. When the Rs

32,700 crore plan for the metro is completed as scheduled in 10
years, the city's
skyline will be dotted with elevated highways , rapid transit ways for buses, truck terminals, mono-rail , a dozen more flyovers and several rail over/under bridges and multi-level car parks to accommodate the needs of an ever-growing populace.

The grand plan places a major thrust on transportation to attract 70% of the travelling public to public transport systems. It also looks at improving infrastructure facilities beyond the Chennai metropolitan area. With hectic industrial activity in suburban Chennai, the plan provides for construction of a super ring road around the city covering the industrial hubs of Tiruporur, Tiruvallur, Sriperumbudur and Singaperumal Koil, a senior official said.

"If the Rs 32,700 crore plan is implemented by various agencies like highways, Chennai corporation , the various municipalities and other departments, city suburbs will get a fillip in infrastructure building and the gap between outer Chennai and the core city will be reduced significantly," he noted.

Elevated corridors form a vital part of the project with an allocation of Rs 13,000 crore. Besides a Rs 2,300 crore project for cleaning and beautifying the city's water ways, the committee suggested taking up new projects including elevated highways from Light House to Kottivakkam, Vadapalani to Porur, Toll Gate to Tiruvottiyur, Parrys Corner to Toll Gate, Chennai Port to Maduravoyal, freight corridor from Ennore Port to Thatchur, Ennore Port to Chennai Port, elevated highways along Beach Road (Kamarajar Salai), Rajaji Salai, IT corridor, Arcot Road, Aminjikarai to Sterling Road and Kathipara to Tambaram.

Mono-rail project covering Guindy Halda junction, Adyar, Mylapore , Royapettah and Dams Road junction at Rs 480 crore and Kalangaraivilakkam MRTS station to Perambur via Anna Flyover and Kilpauk at a cost of Rs 1,000 crore will also be taken up soon.

The committee recommended widening of 200-km bus route roads and 100 km roads inside Chennai city at a cost of Rs 300 crore from two lanes to four or six lanes besides widening the Nesapakkam Road, Choolaimedu high road and Red Hills road.

The state level committee headed by former chief secretary L K Tripathy also recommended augmenting the fleet strength of Metropolitan Transport Corporation substantially. It has urged the government to add another 1,000 buses to its fleet in two years and wanted replacement of 1,000 old buses with new ones at a total cost of Rs 700 crore. The MTC has got 1,000 new buses only last year.

The plan envisages 26 new bus depots and eleven new bus terminals including those at Broadway, Anna Square, Thiruninravur, Sholinganallur, Vandalur, Mangadu , Saligramam and Tambaram east. It has also proposed an allocation of Rs 100 crore for renewal of existing depots and terminals.

It has also proposed a Rapid Bus Transit Ways (RBTW) - Pallavaram Thuraipakkam Road, Sardar Patel Road, NSK Salai, 20-km OMR, 5-km Taramani Road and Mount Road at a cost of Rs 500 crore as a medium term project. In the next phase, it proposes to take up Rs 1,170 crore RBTW for GST road, Chennai Bye Pass and outer ring road.


Source :http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/3438868.cms

^^Thanks Kewl Batty. Good search... :)

Cross-posting from "Chennai Bypass/IRR/ORR & Road Construction Update" thread...

^^

Please follow this link for alignment drawings, structures etc:

http://nhai.org/Doc/15Dec08/feasibility%20report.zip

I have stitched together the alignment map for the elevated expressway project, from the feasibility report:
http://img510.imageshack.us/img510/646/portmadhuravoyalpr3.jpg

Thanks for the finding, Gandharva! :applause:

great find gandhavara.

So there is one more entry and exit in Egmore, why cant they have one more entry, exit point at CMBT too?

Is this port expressway can be used by all vehicles or only for trucks?

Can any one enlight about this?

great find gandhavara.

So there is one more entry and exit in Egmore, why cant they have one more entry, exit point at CMBT too?

Is this port expressway can be used by all vehicles or only for trucks?

Can any one enlight about this?

Its not only for trucks, but mainly built for trucks!
Except, two and three wheelers (autos especially), all other vehicles will be allowed on the expressway. (AFAIK)

And in CMBT, already the grade separator is coming up which can be used to access the corridor and no separate entry-exit point is needed as it is very much clear from the map above!

nice work gandharva. so the nhai are using outdated survey of india maps to plan future infrastructure projects. cmbt is still a farm :haha:

it'll be real sweet if all these expressways are built within 5 years :cheers:

:ohno: What a toll plaza right at the end of Maduravoyal flyover?? The planners must be crazy. If there is a traffic pile up it will extend into the flyover which will be miserable.

^^ thats what im wondering, shouldnt the toll plaza come before entering the interchange, since even the bypass is also tolled? or will they be collecting seperate tolls for each

How will the expressway intersect with the Metro Line: elevated or underground? (There appears a gap in the expressway.) If it is not an elevated one, how can it be treated as a "continuous" 18.3-km long elevated corridor? Can anyone clarify this?

Thanks kewl....

So Mofusil buses too can use this expressway!

Hope the construction starts soon.

And alignment not yet fixed at Metro criss cross!ForMRTS, expressway will be on the top.. Hope the river cleaning project also gets some attension, so that Chennai will be true Singara Chennai!

TIRUCHI: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will lay the foundation stone for the four-lane elevated corridor between War Memorial and Maduravoyal in Chennai on January 8 in the presence of Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi.

Disclosing this here on Thursday, Union Minister for Shipping, Road Transport and Highways T.R. Baalu said the corridor would be built at a cost of Rs.1,600 crore.

http://www.hindu.com/2008/12/26/stories/2008122653910400.htm

Thanks kewl....

So Mofusil buses too can use this expressway!

Hope the construction starts soon.

And alignment not yet fixed at Metro criss cross!ForMRTS, expressway will be on the top.. Hope the river cleaning project also gets some attension, so that Chennai will be true Singara Chennai!

metro alignment was posted by someone on this thread. it is underground all the way from central till koyambedu and then becomes elevated along irr south. it will cross ponamalee road bit west of this koyambedu flyover junction. don't know when they changed plans to make this u/g till anna nagar.

so, that answers many of our questions. i was wondering how koyambedu jn would turn out with the elevated maduravoyal-port road, metro & the complex flyover. so, we will not have elevated road at koyamebdu. but with flyover at this junction, i think it is okay. but i hope they widen this stretch into 8-10 lane road.

Under its flagship programme of National Highways Development Programme (NHDP), the Government had approved the construction of stand alone ring roads, bypasses, grid separators, flyovers, elevated roads, tunnels, road over bridge, underpasses, service roads, etc. in the Public Private Partnership (PPP) mode under NHDP Phase-VII.

• As part of this project, Government has approved today (11.12.2008), construction of 18.3 kms four-lane elevated road from Chennai Port (Gate No.10) to Maduravoyal (NH-4) in the State of Tamil Nadu.

• Chennai Port has experienced a steady increase in the volume of traffic handled over the years, which in turn has increased the traffic on the internal roads of the Port. Presently, because of traffic restrictions on movement of heavy vehicles on NH-4 within Chennai City, the traffic cannot approach Gate No.10 and has to take a circuitous route to approach Gate No.1 with additional travel length of 23 km.

• Based on the studies, a scheme of modernisation of Chennai Port was drawn up and as a part of it, the work of upgrading and expanding the road and railway network within the Port is being executed in a phased manner to facilitate smooth handling of the increased volume of traffic inside the port. The Second Container Terminal in Dr. Ambedkar Dock with a rated capacity of 1 million TEUs per annum is likely to be operational by March, 2009 and will further increase the volume of road traffic from the Port. This aspect coupled with the increasing volume of cars being handled by the Port from the Western belt around Sriperumbudur makes it imperative for a dedicated road connectivity to be established from Gate No.10.

• The Government of Tamil Nadu has also agreed to the alignment of this elevated road and also to carry out the land acquisition, rehabilitation and resettlement on a 50:50 cost basis between the Chennai Port Trust and Government of Tamil Nadu. The Chennai Port Trust will initially bear the entire cost and subsequently 50% of the cost reimbursed from the Government of Tamil Nadu.

• The project will provide an all-time road without any traffic regulatory obstacles so that Port can be approached directly from the outskirts of Chennai City without interfering the city traffic.

• The proposed elevated road provides an all time road for Port based traffic from West (NH-4) and South (NH-45). The elevated road starts near Gate No.10 of Chennai Port, traverses along Cooum River Bank upto Koyambedu uses Koyambedu interchange under construction (Junction of NH-4 with IRR) and again rises as an elevated road near Koyambedu market after the proposal crossing of Metro Rail and ends at Maduravoyal (Junction of NH-4 with Chennai Bypass) of total length of 19 km. For general traffic, entry/exit ramps are proposed on Kamarajar Salai (Exit), Sivananda Salai (Entry), College Road (Entry) and Spur Tank Road( Exit).

• The project will be given on Design, Build, Finance, Operate & Transfer (DBFOT) basis and the concession period is considered 15 years in accordance with the design capacity of the highways.

• The project cost is Rs.1530 crores including the total cost of land acquisition, rehabilitation and resettlement of Rs.3.10 crores. The Government will provide only the viability gap funding, which would not exceed 40% of the total project cost.

• The elevated road project integrates well with the facilities already under construction (Koyambedu Interchange and Maduravoyal Interchange/Chennai Bypass). This elevated road along at-grade NH-4 provides an 8-lane facility along with service roads on either side in congested 4 km stretch of Koyambedu-Maduravoyal. The user fee rates based on the cost of the structure would be as per new Toll Rules.

• The project is expected to be completed within a period of three years.

http://pib.nic.in/release/release.asp?relid=46184

^^

3 years :lol:

I want to remember how the elevated corridor for MRTS progressed between Park Town to Velacherry.

Some where in 2025 or 2030 we can see port expressway in inauguration stage.

Hope by that time, Metro and Velacherry-St.Thomas mount mrts also gets completed.

metro alignment was posted by someone on this thread. it is underground all the way from central till koyambedu and then becomes elevated along irr south. it will cross ponamalee road bit west of this koyambedu flyover junction. don't know when they changed plans to make this u/g till anna nagar.

so, that answers many of our questions. i was wondering how koyambedu jn would turn out with the elevated maduravoyal-port road, metro & the complex flyover. so, we will not have elevated road at koyamebdu. but with flyover at this junction, i think it is okay. but i hope they widen this stretch into 8-10 lane road.

Thanks for the info.

But in the port expressway alignment map, it is shown that Metro depot is criss crossing.

Can we get any information whether the metro depot is underground or surface level?

I guess mostly it should in surface level! then how it crosses PH and elevated port expressway!!

Thanks for the info.

But in the port expressway alignment map, it is shown that Metro depot is criss crossing.

Can we get any information whether the metro depot is underground or surface level?

I guess mostly it should in surface level! then how it crosses PH and elevated port expressway!!

from previous metro map, it looked like metro would be u/g till anna nagar / koyambedu and then it would get elevated along irr south. because of cooum, i would guess metro would be elevated over it & over nh4. whereas maduravoyal-port connectivity would be at surface with nh4 at the junction with metro and is otherwise elevated. so, it all fits in. but a bit of a mess from port connectivity perspective.

Soma-Isolux consortium may bag 2 NHAI projects
Our Bureau

New Delhi, Dec. 26 Soma Enterprises-Isolux Corsan consortium may bag two highway widening projects from the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI).

The projects are 6-laning of 190-km stretch on Varanasi-Aurangabad section and construction of 18.3 km of 4-lane, elevated road from Chennai Port to Maduravoyal.

Soma-Isolux consortium has sought the lowest viability gap funding (VGF) from NHAI for these two projects, said industry sources.

For the Varanasi-Aurangabad project, Gammon India had also submitted its bid. For the Chennai Port to Maduravoyal project, Maytas was in the race.

NHAI also received bids from three bidders (Reliance, Soma Enterprises-Isolux Corsan and GMR) for another project -- 6-laning of Krishnagiri-Walahjpet section. A top NHAI official declined to comment on the project winner.

“We have received bids for three projects today. The bids have to be studied and a final decision will be taken after the Board approval,” he said.

A few days ago, NHAI had received bids for three more projects — 4-laning of MP/Maharashtra border-Dhule; 6-laning of Pimpalgaon-Nasik-Gonde and widening Kishangarh-Ajmer-Beawar section.

For 4-laning of MP/Maharashtra border-Dhule, consortia in race were -- L&T-Ashoka Buildcon, Maytas-Nagarjuna Construction, HCC-John Laing, and Isolux Corsan-Soma Enterprises. HCC-John Laing consortium is expected to be the winner.

For 6-laning of Pimpalgaon-Nasik-Gonde section, L&T-Ashoka Buildcon, HCC-John Laing, and Isolux Corsan-Soma Enterprises were in race. The bid winner is likely to be L&T-Ashoka Buildcon consortium.

For widening of Kishangarh-Ajmer-Beawar section, Maytas-China Railway 18th Bureau Group, HCC-John Laing, Navinya (a Tata Group company)-Atlantia SpA and Isolux Corsan-Soma Enterprises were the bidders, it is learnt. Navinya-Atlantia SpA consortium is likely to bag the project, say industry sources.

link: http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2008/12/27/stories/2008122751640500.htm

Source: Deccan Chronicle, Chennai, 06/01/2009

http://dc-epaper.com/DC/DCC/2009/01/06/Article//006/06_01_2009_006_003.jpg

Text-only:

The construction work for the prestigious elevated express highway from Chennai Port to Maduravoyal is all set to kick off from January 8, 2009 with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh laying the foundation stone.

Being the first-of-its-kind in India, the elevated highway will be built at a cost of Rs 1,468 crore on the west bank of Cooum river. The elevated highway project, to be implemented by the Central and state governments under the National Highway Development Programme (NHDP) phase VII, is to link Chennai Port gate 10 with Maduravoyal.

The proposed road between Chennai Port and Koymabedu will go along the Cooum river crossing 12 bridges and then along NH4 for the remaining portion from Koyambedu to Maduravoyal.

“The total length of the corridor is 18.3 km and it would be a four-lane elevated corridor designed for a speed of 80 km, minimum, per hour,” sources in the Wilbursmith associates private limited told Deccan Chronicle. Wilbursmith is the consultant firm that has done the feasibility study of the project and has also designed the elevated highway.

“The elevated corridor on NH4 from Chennai Port to Maduravoyal is the dream project of Chennai port. The completion of the project will increase the total volume of cargo handling of the Chennai port and also will be helpful for 24 hours evacuation of cargo through the southern gate of the port,” K. Suresh, chairman of the Chennai Port Trust said. “Also the long term vision of the port to become a major container hub will be realised within a decade by the completion of this project,” Mr Suresh added.

According to the officials of Chennai port and NHAI, this elevated project will also benefit the public by providing them an alternative evacuation mode through the entry ramps that are provided at Sivananda Salai and College road and exit ramps at Kamrajar Salai and Spur Tank road.

^^

New Indian Express, Jan 7 2009

http://epaper.newindpress.com/NE/NE/2009/01/07/Article//002/07_01_2009_002_009.jpg

For quick freight movement in and out of the Chennai Port, the National Highways Authority of India plans to build a four-lane elevated corridor from Chennai Port to Maduravoyal. Once completed, it will be the longest elevated corridor in the country. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will lay the foundation stone for the project tomorrow The State Govt will provide 50 per cent of the cost towards land acquisition, rehabilitation of the people displaced by the project
PRIME Minister Manmohan Singh will lay the foundation stone for the country’s longest elevated corridor, aimed at quick and continuous freight movement from the Chennai Port, at a function at Madura- voyal on Thursday.

Explaining the project, Union Shipping Minister T R Baalu said the four-laned 19 km long corridor would be constructed at a total cost of Rs 1,655 crore, with Rs 310 crore outlay for land acquisition and rehabilitation. The project would be undertaken on Build Operate and Transfer (BOT) basis by the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI), as part of the National Highways Development Programme (NHDP).

The corridor, which has an elevated length of 17.5 km, will take off from inside the Chennai Port near the War Memorial gate and will run along the banks of the River Cooum to the Koyambedu Grade Separator. The balance length will be at the centre of the NH-4 from Koyambedu to Maduravoyal.

The public will also benefit from the Expressway as entry ramps are being provided at Sivananda Salai, College Road and Koyambedu and exit ramps at Kamarajar Salai, Spur Tank Road and Koyambedu. Toll plazas will be located at Spur Tank Road and Maduravoyal.

Baalu revealed that the State Government has, in principle, agreed to chip in with 50 per cent of the cost towards land acquisition and rehabilitation.

About 12,000 families of the weaker sections, especially the slum dwellers, will have to be rehabilitated. Providing alternative shelters to them could mean an estimated cost of Rs 258 crore.

From daily thanthi

http://www.dailythanthi.com/thanthiepaper/812009/cni1page3.jpg

and today PM is going to lay foundation stone for this project

http://www.dailythanthi.com/thanthiepaper/812009/MDSG254754.jpg

^^

3 years :lol:

I want to remember how the elevated corridor for MRTS progressed between Park Town to Velacherry.

Some where in 2025 or 2030 we can see port expressway in inauguration stage.

Hope by that time, Metro and Velacherry-St.Thomas mount mrts also gets completed.

You are RIGHT. Given their past experience, there is NO WAY they can complete this in 3 years and 1600C. It will probably take 10 years with 10,600 Crores.

You are RIGHT. Given their past experience, there is NO WAY they can complete this in 3 years and 1600C. It will probably take 10 years with 10,600 Crores.

Do we know the exact elevated height of the expressway ? I find no mention of that.

You are RIGHT. Given their past experience, there is NO WAY they can complete this in 3 years and 1600C. It will probably take 10 years with 10,600 Crores.

This seems to have a very large land aquisition component, which is frightening.

Just the Kathipara flyover took 3 years.

I hope they atleast open this in phases.

Do we know the exact elevated height of the expressway ? I find no mention of that.

^^From Gandharva's post above (post #77), it's 12 metres high.

CHENNAI: The road development programme should adopt an inclusive and holistic approach to bring benefits to many instead of a few, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said on Thursday.

Referring to the rehabilitation and resettlement component of the Rs.1,655-crore Chennai Port-Maduravoyal elevated corridor project, Dr. Singh said 12,000 families of the weaker sections, especially slum dwellers, would be rehabilitated by providing them with alternative shelters. The State government and the Chennai Port Trust had agreed to share equally the cost of land acquisition and rehabilitation and resettlement.

Laying the foundation for the project at Maduravoyal near here, Dr. Singh said: “This project shows that constructing modern highways in urban areas must be organically linked to local development, city planning and landscaping and livelihood opportunities for the weaker sections. I am very happy that the Government of Tamil Nadu, under the leadership of … Chief Minister Dr. Kalaignar Karunanidhi, is paying special attention to all these aspects.”

Noting that the Centre had initiated a programme for four-laning of more than 12,000 km through public-private partnership under Phase III of the National Highways Development Programme (NHDP), the Prime Minister said the government had also approved construction of 1,000 km of expressways under Phase-VI and construction of ring roads, flyovers and bypasses on selected stretches under Phase-VII. The projects were expected to be completed by 2015.

Expressing the government’s intention of encouraging private sector participation in road development through more incentives and facilities, he said all future projects under the NHDP would be executed through the PPP mode.

As for the progress of highway projects in Tamil Nadu, Dr. Singh said the entire stretch of the Golden Quadrilateral and Phase-I of the NHDP to a length of 342 km had been completed. The stretches were being taken up for six-laning. The stretch of the North-South Corridor for 756 km was nearing completion.

...

Source: http://www.hindu.com/2009/01/09/stories/2009010961080100.htm

Does anyone know as to how the proposed expressway will clear the grade separator at Koyambedu ?

You are RIGHT. Given their past experience, there is NO WAY they can complete this in 3 years and 1600C. It will probably take 10 years with 10,600 Crores.

I came across this innovative contract provision by TxDot (Texas Department of Transportation) in US state of Texas (Austin City) to get the work completed on time or earlier if possible.

If only our government executes contracts like this - we could get our projects done faster :wallbash:

Text from http://www.txdot.gov/project_information/projects/austin/parmer_loop1/construction_tech.htm
Parmer Lane/Loop 1 Incentives to Minimize Traffic Delays

We realize that construction may inconvenience the traveling public and are committed to minimizing these impacts. The Parmer Lane/Loop 1 project (http://www.txdot.gov/project_information/projects/austin/parmer_loop1/default.htm)uses innovative contract provision that create incentives for the contractor to complete the work on time or earlier if possible.
Project Milestones Bonus/Penalties
Milestones are contract provisions for time-critical phases of the project. Each milestone includes:


a description of the work,
a timeline for the work, and
a daily value associated with the road-user costs during that work phase.

If a contractor completes the milestone early, he will receive a bonus. If the contractor fails to meet the milestone deadline, he will be penalized. The bonus or penalty is equal to the daily road-user cost multiplied by the reduction/addition in days. Here are the specific milestones and their bonuses/penalties for this project.


Milestone 1
The Loop 1 southbound frontage road will be reduced to one lane from the southbound entrance ramp south of Parmer Lane to Waters Park Rd. to install storm sewers.

Time allotted - 15 working days to reopen all the southbound frontage road lanes
Bonus/penalty - $5,000/day





Milestone 2
The southbound exist to Duval will be closed to finish construction of the new collector/distributor bridge to reconfigure the ramps.

Time allotted - 40 working days to open the new bridge, which will be the new Duval exit
Bonus/penalty - $10,000/day





Milestone 3
The Parmer Lane bridge over Loop 1 will be narrowed to five lanes to complete the widening of the bridge.

Time allotted - 82 working days to reopen all lanes
Bonus/penalty - $10,000/day



Lane Rentals
"Lane rental" means the contractor is charged a fee for occupying travel lanes to do work. The fee, based on road-user cost, motivates the contractor to minimize the time a lane or combination of lanes is out of service.
Rental rates differ for nighttime and daytime hours, peak hours and non-peak hours. These variable rates encourage the contractor to work when lane rental rates are lower and to be more productive when lanes are closed.
Charges can be applied on daily, hourly or smaller time increments. Lane rentals allow the costs associated with delays and detours to be considered in the project schedule. The costs of keeping a lane closed are then transferred to the contractor through penalties assessed for late openings.
If the contractor accomplishes the work in fewer hours than we have estimated, the contractor will receive the remainder of the estimated fees as a bonus for minimizing traffic impacts.

^^
Interesting but

1. All huddles should be cleared before giving the contracts. This means no cases / stay orders for eviction and people should be more benevolent to move out of the land that needs to construct the flyovers with out creating huddles. which will not happen, even if the people ready to do, the opposition will not let them so easily, even if the project was proposed by the on their previous terms :P

2. The Road usage rentals are there in indian corporation. and their charges are revised last year (I remember reading in The Hindu, will get you the link if possible). and this rate is not just for the construction of the flyovers or other govt project. For any one to keep the construction material on the road (even the private owners, how small they are) they need to get the permission from the corporation and pay the rent for according to the sq feet and for number of days they keep it. But none cares about it as if this rule never exist. But I hope for construction of flyovers or other projects the contractors seeks the permission form the corporation.

finally, there will not be a single bidding for any projects. We might again suffer lacking infrastructure :P

-Bless
WE GET ONLY WHAT WE PAID FOR.

http://www.chennaicorporation.gov.in/images/chennai_city_municipal_corporation_act.pdf

Read 214A.

The rules are really interesting and meaningful. (sometimes we don't care about)

-Bless
WE GET ONLY WHAT WE PAID FOR.

Soma Enterprise Ltd. got the project

^^Details please... :)

http://img216.imageshack.us/img216/7264/2009012858270301xa1.jpg

Two exit and two entry ramps along the 17.5-km stretch planned

CHENNAI: The feasibility report, submitted by Wilbur Smith Consultants to the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) for the proposed four-lane elevated expressway from Chennai Port to Maduravoyal on the National Highway 4, has suggested that a toll plaza be set up on the facility near Chetpet.

Another toll plaza would come up as per the suggestion near Maduravoyal.

The project will acquire about 10,000 sq.m of private land and is estimated to displace about 3,600 houses in the slum areas along the Cooum and about 650 houses in non-slum areas.

In order to facilitate fast and easy movement of traffic, the road is elevated and will have only two exit and two entry ramps along its 17.5-km stretch.

One entry ramp from Sivananda Salai is meant to allow traffic from south and north Chennai to access the elevated road. Another entry ramp on the College Road is meant for traffic from Anna Salai via Greams Road. The exit ramp near the Chennai port will allow vehicles to proceed to North and South Chennai while the exit on Spur Tank Road will allow vehicles to connect with Anna Salai via Casa Major Road.

The elevation at the road starting point is about 1 meter and 12 meters at the section near Koyambedu. The expressway will have a toll plaza and will be laid at the cost of Rs.1,655 crore. The foundation stone was laid by the Prime Minister Manmohan Singh earlier this month.

http://www.hindu.com/2009/01/28/stories/2009012858270300.htm

Residents seek HC stay on Port corridor project


TIMES NEWS NETWORK


Chennai: A public interest writ petition seeking a stay on the implementation of the 1,655-crore elevated corridor project from Chennai Port to Maduravoyal, has been filed in the Madras high court.
Four Maduravoyal residents, whose land had already been acquired for the Koyambedu-Maduravoyal road expansion project, moved the court, claiming that their lands have again been targeted by the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) for acquisition.
They contended that in August 2005, their lands were acquired for a road-widening scheme, to complement the Golden Quadrilateral project. “We received the amount and handed over the lands to the highway authorities, who had now taken possession of the lands.” Again, in July 2008, the petitioners noticed certain paint marks on their walls, without information or intimation.
Only then did they come to know that the lands had been identified for the proposed elevated corridor project, for which the prime minister laid the foundation earlier this month. Noting that they had just modified or built new structures on their lands, after a portion of the buildings had been razed for the road expansion project, the residents had sent representations to the highway authorities asking them to reconsider their decision to take over patta lands on which new residential buildings had been constructed.
If the corridor is aligned along the banks of Cooum river there is no need to divest residents of their patta lands, they said, adding that the authorities too need not invest much on acquisition proceedings.
Charging the authorities with ignoring the genuine grievances of the landowners, the petitioners said acquisition proceedings were going ahead mechanically. The matter, listed before the first bench for hearing, could not be taken up on Tuesday and is expected to come up for hearing on Wednesday, said additional advocate-general P Wilson.

^^^^ :ohno::ohno::ohno:

TALE OF TWO ROADS


PROJECT: Elevated corridor to connect Chennai Port and Maduravoyal

HURDLE: Residents file PIL in high court against acquisition of their land

PROJECT: Elevated corridor to connect Santhome and Kottivakkam

HURDLE: Environmentalists oppose the project saying it will endanger Olive Ridley turtles



http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Repository/getimage.dll?path=TOICH/2009/01/28/4/Img/Pc0041300.jpg



Elevated coast road a threat to turtles, say green activists


B Aravind Kumar | TNN


Chennai: Thirty years of conservation of the critically endangered Olive Ridely turtles will be rendered useless if the elevated corridor connecting Santhome and Kottivakkam comes up over Chennai’s beaches, environmentalists fear.
Pointing out that the elevated corridor would run right through the middle of four fishing hamlets, activists wonder how projects endangering environment are cleared. Apart from the Olive Ridley, the project is also a threat to the fragile marine and micro-organisms dependent on beaches and the coast.
“Conservation of turtles in the nation began on Madras beaches in the 1970s. When we saw the design of the proposed elevated corridor, we shuddered,’’ says Arun, coordinator, Students Sea Turtle Conservation Network (SSTCN). He has been walking the beaches between Besant Nagar and Kottivakkam for more than a decade. The elevated corridor will infringe upon 60% of the work area, he said. “We will have to wind up our efforts,’’ he rues.
Between December and April every year, students and volunteers walk on the beaches every night looking out for eggs of Olive Ridley turtles. If they find any, they relocate them to a safer place. When the turtle hatchlings emerge 45 days later, they are released safely into the sea.
“The elevated corridor will have a huge negative impact on turtles. Already, the movement of hatchlings attracted by light is a major worry,’’ Akila says.
“It will be like destroying a two-decade-old conservation programme in a single stroke,’’ says Supraja Dharini, chairperson, Tree Foundation.“The Olive Ridley turtle is the flagship species for conservation efforts,’’ Supraja adds.
Activists feel the elevated corridor could spell doom to the government’s efforts to restore the lost ecosystem of the Adyar estuary that is being taken up in two phases.

^^^^ :ohno::ohno::ohno:

http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Daily...&login=default (http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Daily/skins/TOI/navigator.asp?Daily=TOICH&login=default)

Scope:Design, Engineering, Finance, Procurement, Operation & Maintenance of New 4- Lane Elevated Road from Chennai Port to Maduravoyal (NH-4), in the State of Tamilnadu under NHDP phase- VII on BOT (Toll) basis.
Length of Project 19 Kms
Estimated Cost 1220 Crores
Concession Period 15 yrs from Appt Date
Construction Period 1095 days
Toll Plaza 2 Nos Km 8+300 (On Elevated Road), Km 13+217-13+520 of NH-4 at ground.

Entry Ramps: 5, At km 1+470 from sivananda salai for a length of 575m, At Km 7+140 from college road for a length of 330m, from NH-4 to elevated road for a length of 423m. , from Km 14.227 to km 14.560, from km 17.200 to km 17.543.( All are 2 Lane Ramps)
Exit Ramps 5, At 0+650 for a length of 530m to Kamrajar Salai, At Km 8+040 to Spur Tank Road for a length of 447m, from elevated road to NH-4 for a length of 427m, from Km 14.227 to km 14.560, from km 17.200 to km 17.543. ( All are 2 Lane Ramps)

Elevated coast road a threat to turtles, say green activists


B Aravind Kumar | TNN


Chennai: Thirty years of conservation of the critically endangered Olive Ridely turtles will be rendered useless if the elevated corridor connecting Santhome and Kottivakkam comes up over Chennai’s beaches, environmentalists fear.
Pointing out that the elevated corridor would run right through the middle of four fishing hamlets, activists wonder how projects endangering environment are cleared. Apart from the Olive Ridley, the project is also a threat to the fragile marine and micro-organisms dependent on beaches and the coast.
“Conservation of turtles in the nation began on Madras beaches in the 1970s. When we saw the design of the proposed elevated corridor, we shuddered,’’ says Arun, coordinator, Students Sea Turtle Conservation Network (SSTCN). He has been walking the beaches between Besant Nagar and Kottivakkam for more than a decade. The elevated corridor will infringe upon 60% of the work area, he said. “We will have to wind up our efforts,’’ he rues.
Between December and April every year, students and volunteers walk on the beaches every night looking out for eggs of Olive Ridley turtles. If they find any, they relocate them to a safer place. When the turtle hatchlings emerge 45 days later, they are released safely into the sea.
“The elevated corridor will have a huge negative impact on turtles. Already, the movement of hatchlings attracted by light is a major worry,’’ Akila says.
“It will be like destroying a two-decade-old conservation programme in a single stroke,’’ says Supraja Dharini, chairperson, Tree Foundation.“The Olive Ridley turtle is the flagship species for conservation efforts,’’ Supraja adds.
Activists feel the elevated corridor could spell doom to the government’s efforts to restore the lost ecosystem of the Adyar estuary that is being taken up in two phases.

^^^^ :ohno::ohno::ohno:

http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Daily...&login=default (http://epaper.timesofindia.com/Daily/skins/TOI/navigator.asp?Daily=TOICH&login=default)

This is was exactly i was pointing at! At the flyover project section for the negative side of the corridor!! Olive turtles cannot be compensated for the sake of elevated corridors!:cheers:

There must another way to connect Marina and ECR! We should be example to other cities not to spoil ecosystems!!

Can Moderators change the name of the thread to "Chennai Elevated Expressways" instead of the present one which says "Chennai Elevated Expressway-port to Madhuravoyal NHAI implementatio"????

We have around 10 Expressways on the anvil and 3 Freight corridors. so The title should be changed. Mods plzz change the name!

Work on the 1st corridor has already started I guess, the 2nd one Marina to ECR is gonna start.

^^Seconded... :)

deleted.

CHENNAI: The Madras High Court on Wednesday directed the National Highways Authority of India to consider a representation, seeking reconsideration of the proposed acquisition of land from Koyambedu to Maduravoyal for the elevated corridor from the Chennai port to Maduravoyal, and pass orders in a week.

Justice K. Suguna passed the order on a writ petition filed by L. Gunasekaran of Maduravoyal and three others.

The plea

In the petition, filed by counsel R. Karthikeyan, the petitioners submitted that the National Highways Department recently acquired land from Koyambedu to Maduravoyal on both sides of EVR Salai for widening the highway and improving access to the Golden Quadrilateral corridor. A notification was published, value of the land determined and payment made to owners during 2007-08. The land was demarcated and the petitioners, along with others, handed over their land to the authorities. Mr. Gunasekaran said that after the acquisition, the owners, including himself, renovated the buildings. Some demolished entire structures and constructed multi-storey buildings on the patta land. In July last year, he found a mark painted in the building by the authorities without any intimation to the landowners. Enquiries revealed that the NHAI proposed to construct an elevated corridor. A batch of representations, dated November last, was forwarded to the authorities to reconsider the proposal.

Proof enclosed


The judge said the stand of Additional Advocate-General P. Wilson was that since no notification had been issued under section 3 (a) of the National Highways Act, the question of considering the representation as on date did not arise. But, as rightly pointed out by counsel for the petitioner, proof for the same had been enclosed. The foundation had been laid for the project.

Formalities

She said that when steps had been taken even without the respondents — the competent authority and Special DRO (LA), National Highways, Poonamallee; the competent authority, the State Highways Department and the National Highways Department, Poonamallee; the Tiruvallur Collector and the NHAI — complying with the formalities under the relevant Act, the representation of the petitioners had to be considered and orders passed.

Source: http://www.hindu.com/2009/01/29/stories/2009012959270400.htm

Two exit and two entry ramps along the 17.5-km stretch planned

In order to facilitate fast and easy movement of traffic, the road is elevated and will have only two exit and two entry ramps along its 17.5-km stretch.


Scope: Design, Engineering, Finance, Procurement, Operation & Maintenance of New 4- Lane Elevated Road from Chennai Port to Maduravoyal (NH-4), in the State of Tamilnadu under NHDP phase- VII on BOT (Toll) basis.

Entry Ramps: 5, At km 1+470 from sivananda salai for a length of 575m, At Km 7+140 from college road for a length of 330m, from NH-4 to elevated road for a length of 423m. , from Km 14.227 to km 14.560, from km 17.200 to km 17.543.( All are 2 Lane Ramps)
Exit Ramps 5, At 0+650 for a length of 530m to Kamrajar Salai, At Km 8+040 to Spur Tank Road for a length of 447m, from elevated road to NH-4 for a length of 427m, from Km 14.227 to km 14.560, from km 17.200 to km 17.543. ( All are 2 Lane Ramps)

Do both the above items refer to the same road project? One says that there will be just 2 entry and exit ramps. The other one puts the count at 5 ???

Just for understanding - If we have just two entry / exits for almost 20 kms, can we handle any accidents / any road blocks on the corridor? What would happen if say, a truck breaks down on top of the corridor, blocking one / more lanes. Then won't it become a traffic nightmare? Plus, the rescue tow vehicles will find it difficult to reach the truck. Is there anything about additional shoulders / lanes at regular intervals?

Do both the above items refer to the same road project? One says that there will be just 2 entry and exit ramps. The other one puts the count at 5 ???

Just for understanding - If we have just two entry / exits for almost 20 kms, can we handle any accidents / any road blocks on the corridor? What would happen if say, a truck breaks down on top of the corridor, blocking one / more lanes. Then won't it become a traffic nightmare? Plus, the rescue tow vehicles will find it difficult to reach the truck. Is there anything about additional shoulders / lanes at regular intervals?

accident spot could be reached fast from opposite direction.

According to the concession agreement there will be 5 entry and exit ramps..

This is real Bad :ohno: The Expressway should proceed taking care of these issues. It cannot afford to stop the project now!

CHENNAI: Beach-goers, fisherfolk, environmentalists and residents of Foreshore Estate, Olcott Kuppam and Orur Kuppam in Besant Nagar on Friday
demanded that the state government abandon its proposed 7.5-km six-lane elevated expressway along the beach from Marina to East Coast Road.

Under a newly formed forum, Save Chennai Beaches, an awareness and protest rally was held on Eliots beach. Members of the forum alleged that the project would disrupt fishing activity, displace coastal residents, disturb nesting turtles and damage ecologically sensitive areas such as the Theosophical Society and Adyar estuary, besides changing the face of residential areas.

Arun from Students Sea Turtle Conservation Network (SSTCN), a voluntary group, said that the construction of the expressway would disrupt the nesting spots of the Olive Ridley turtles, an endangered species listed in Schedule I of the Wildlife Act. SSTCN has been working since 1980 along the coastline, spreading awareness about the species and the need to conserve it. "We have so far saved more than 8,000 turtle hatchlings and released them safely into the sea. The proposed expressway will make it hell here," he said.

After consultant Willbur Smith Associates Pvt Ltd, appointed by the highways department, conducted a detailed feasibility study last year, the government planned to start work on the corridor construction, from the Lighthouse to Foreshore Estate, crossing Adyar estuary and beyond, up to Ururkuppam. The alignment joins Besant Nagar Fifth Avenue Road near Eliots Beach, before the second phase in Kottivakkam takes over.

According to Madras high court senior advocate Sriram Panchu, both phases violated environmental rules and the coastal regulation zone (CRZ) notification, 1991. He added: "The proposal is a subversion of the masterplan, as it finds no mention in the document. Given the magnitude of the legal issues, I only hope and trust the government should realise the legal implications and withdraw the project."

Theosophical Society general manager S Harihara Raghavan said the expressway would badly affect the fragile ecology in the Society grounds. "There were more than 160 migratory and native birds in the society, but it has come down to 80 now. The population of birds will be further affected in case the elevated expressway takes shape. The government should also think about the broken bridge near Srinivasapuram, which was washed away 30 years ago due to soil condition."

M G Devasahayam, managing trustee, SUSTAIN, an NGO, said that various plans proposed by government agencies to reduce traffic congestion - upgradation of roads near Foreshore Estate, linking Greenways Road to Durgabai Deshmukh Road, reclamation of the four-lane carriageway on L B Road by removing encroachments and construction of a grade separator-cum-subway at the Tiruvanmiyur junction - should be implemented soon.

Members of Save Chennai Beaches plan to make a representation to the state government soon.

Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Cities/Chennai/Plea-to-junk-elevated-expressway-project/articleshow/4356980.cms

both the Coastal Elevated Expressway and the Port-Maduravoyil elevated stretch need to be dropped.

I don't think any elevated highway need to be given permission for construction inside the IRR ring.

^^ So wat do you propose? An underground Expressway? [Just curious]
Here's is the list of 22 expressways proposed.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chennai_Elevated_Expressways

^^ So wat do you propose? An underground Expressway? [Just curious]
Here's is the list of 22 expressways proposed.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chennai_Elevated_Expressways

Try alternative means :

1. Expand Enore Port rapidly and decongest Chennai Port.
2. Connect Enore port with NH5. ( well its already there inways )
3. Expand Chennai Bypass on a war footing all the way to Ennore. This way Ennore will be connected with NH4 & NH45 through Chennai Bypass.
4. Also build the Chennai ORR very fast, and make it 6 lane al lthe way from Ennore.

As for local traffic within Chennai :
1. Invest more on metro. More lines and routes.
2. Increase road tax, making people use public transport more.
3. Use this income to improve quality of smaller roads, peripheral roads etc and take public transport more closer to peoples home. So there will be fewer people in the streets.

Investing on immovable concrete structures imo is not a good option for long term plans. They can become an obstacle to city planning very soon, as many western countries are finding out nowadays.

Try alternative means :

1. Expand Enore Port rapidly and decongest Chennai Port.


yea!! The Kattupalli Shipyard cum port is being built by L&T & is juzz 5 km from Ennore port and also both Chennai and Ennore ports are under expansion.
So these 3 ports will be able to cope up with the demands!

And I dont think they have planned all these Elevated Expressways for the heck of it!? Anyway, lets see wats gonna happen.

...

I am not sure why and does govt has any say after giving land.

Completely agree with Fusionist about the 2 'expressways'. For small flyovers within the city, it is OK for the govt to go ahead on its own, but with major projects like these two, the govt should certainly do two things- 1. explain to the public why it is necessary to build such an expressway and that it has explored all other alternatives and has then arrived at this solution and also address all possible concerns in its explanation, 2. hold a public discussion to hear out the people's views. These are absolute essentials in a democracy and I don't think this has happened in either case.

These are major projects that can potentially affect thousands of people and it is the duty of the govt to explain clearly why it is necessary.

Port - Madhuravoyal Elevated Expressway has been listed in NHAI website in the section "under implementation". It can be seen at the end of the page under NHDP- Phase VII. Also Chennai - Ennore Express Way is in progress.

List of project under implementation (http://www.nhai.org/implementation.asp)

And this page shows that Soma Enterprises is implementing the project.
http://www.nhai.org/listnhdpphase5.asp



Any site updates for this project?

ive seen clearing going on on the banks of cooum behind tarapore towers

^^ thats gud to hear! :) mabbe in few months, the pillars start coming up?

^^ that will really nice to see if the project takes its shape... all that we need is to finish of the project at a great pace.... :banana:

‘Save the Beach’ campaign by south Chennai residents


Source (http://www.hindu.com/2009/06/06/stories/2009060658490200.htm)


FOR A CAUSE: Beach lovers, including children, were part of the campaign on Friday to protest the proposed elevated coastal road.

CHENNAI: Concerned residents of Besant Nagar and other south Chennai localities close to the shore gathered at the Elliot’s Beach to condemn the proposed six-lane elevated expressway project along the coast on Friday. As part of the ‘Save the Beach’ campaign they distributed pamphlets to visitors at the beach in an effort to build public awareness against the project on the occasion of World Environment Day.

The campaigners added colour to their protest by hiring professional stilt-walkers from Vellore who caught the eye of all the passers-by. A group of artists strummed on guitars to pull the crowds. The young and the old got together to raise colourful banners with messages to save the beach. “The project will endanger the beach environment and affect the livelihood of fisherpeople who depend on it,” said T. Venkat, one of the campaigners. The expressway, which will run from the Light House point to the East Coast Road touching all the fishing villages along this stretch, has evoked fear of displacement among the coastal communities.

Pattinapakkam fishing panchayat representative A. Gangadharan said the concerns of fishermen were being ignored by the project authorities and tenements proposed for their relocation during the project construction phase were too tiny for any family to live decently. Regular beach users also expressed concern over the loss of places of recreation if such projects were to come up by the beach. “We want the beach to remain as a beach and not be hijacked for infrastructure projects,” said V.A. Subramaniam, a Besant Nagar resident. Over 1,000 people have signed a memorandum against the project and submitted it to the Chief Secretary. The memorandum argues that the proposed project instead of decongesting the Marina, as proposed in the feasibility report, will only further increase traffic in the area by attracting traffic from all over the city to the expressway.

^^
does anyone know the planned alignment along thirvuvanmiyur beach? if so, please send me a link that provide such detailed information.

All who want elevated corridor along the beach. Please visit the link below and know what is happening. Remember always we need land to live and develop.

http://news.rediff.com/interview/2009/jun/05/the-fight-to-save-indias-beaches.htm

Saviours of Fisherfolks..

http://www.hindu.com/2009/06/06/stories/2009060658490200.htm

Look at the faces of these neo-intellectuals.. They all look very committed to the "livelihood of fisherpeople"

So let the Govt. resettle a million Fisherfolks in the VAST beaches of Chennai from Harbour to Mamallapuram.. They all will have an Urban environment to sustain themselves and our lovely Beach savers would have contributed their mite towards the poor as part of their social committment..

I do not think they have any other selfish motive !!!

Saviours of Fisherfolks..

http://www.hindu.com/2009/06/06/stories/2009060658490200.htm

Look at the faces of these neo-intellectuals.. They all look very committed to the "livelihood of fisherpeople"

So let the Govt. resettle a million Fisherfolks in the VAST beaches of Chennai from Harbour to Mamallapuram.. They all will have an Urban environment to sustain themselves and our lovely Beach savers would have contributed their mite towards the poor as part of their social committment..

I do not think they have any other selfish motive !!!

Honestly, I'm not sure they care much for the fishing community as much as the destruction of the beach. Frankly, I'm more concerned about losing the beach than those fishing villages myself. Whatever, as long this thing doesn't destroy the coastal ecosystem, the kuppams could go.

Having 3 major ports nearer to each other itself is not a great decision to start with. It looks totally irreversible at this stage.

Not connecting them to the main highways will be a criminal offence after spending so much money on these 3 ports development. North Chennai , being a congested area adds more obstacles for the development of connecting roads.

If you think of dedicated rail corridors connecting the ports to a suburban inland port (or a few), the cost of intermittant transport and time may be the major issues.

That puts the Port Madhuravoyal corridor as a top priority. But still the other 2 ports may not benefit much from this corridor.

The Ring Road which connects Bangalore Highway and Kolkotha Highway goes upto Minjur (Pooneri to Ennore / Manali Road). The same can be augmented to have dedicated freight corridors for the truck movement. Both L&T and Ennore ports may benefit from this. But still the old Madras Port will suffer. They can plan connecting old Madras Port and Ennore - may be by an elevated corridor since it will avoid the Parrys -Ennore congested belt. But implementation in short time is a BIG question.

We can not imagine anything on the lines of the most ambitious Mumbai Worli Sea Link Corridor. We are in TN.

Probably both Madras Port - Maduravoyal and Ring road extension upto Ennore are necessary.

But the coastal corridor project along the sea coast upto ECR sucks. We have discussed enough about this. It looks like the most unimaginative project ever, not at all considering the consequences, which can never be redeemed / repaired later. I read recently that the alighnment is not along the broken bridge but a little west of the same cutiing into the Theo. Society forest. I see some ulterior motives here.

It is better to consult all the stakeholders and then decide on the right course of action.

Please note that the Fishermen Kuppam people are the original habitants of the coastal areas and we are the encroachers. Though they have been spoiled to the core by doles (Tsunami), we can not justify any stand to move them away.

It is better to accomodate them first in the masterplan and then plan some thing for us.

wrong post.

Elevated expressway work to begin in November

Source (http://www.hindu.com/2009/06/18/stories/2009061859590400.htm)


CHENNAI: Work on the 19.01-km four-lane elevated expressway from the Chennai Port Trust point to Maduravoyal on National Highway 4 will start in November and be completed in three years, said D.V. Raju, Soma Enterprise senior vice-president (business development), here on Wednesday.

“After signing the concession agreement with the National Highways Authority of India on May 18, we have started the preliminary work such as mobilisation, designing, casting yard, surveying and borehole soil investigation. Consultants have been finalised. The State government has to hand over 50 per cent of the land to us within six months from the date of signing the agreement and the balance within one year. The government is in the process of acquiring land and we don’t foresee any problem in starting the project on time,” he said.

According to him, the project costing Rs.2,090 crore will be undertaken on Build-Operate-Transfer (BOT) basis and the concession period is 15 years. The Centre will provide 40 per cent of the project cost as viability gap fund. The company has already received up front over Rs.260 crore.

Mr. Raju said the four-lane elevated expressway from the Central Silk Board junction to Electronics City in Bangalore would become operational in the next two months.

It is being built at a cost of Rs.760 crore.

^^ huh! :shifty:
I thought the work already started.. :ohno:

^^

So the work is going to start by end of 2009 i.e 2010 starting... It will progress for more than 5yrs.:lol:

Even now they can moot the railway line from Avadi to Sriperumbudur with an extension to Kanchipuram.

Just like Uothukottai-Athipattu, railways should go for FEDL - Fully electrified and double line.

It will shorten the train journey between Kanchi and Chennai.

Why November??!! :bash::bash: Why not now .. :cry::cry:

all sorts of preliminary work will be done lk soil testing etc and also gov shud hand over some land b4 tat

Any updates on this?
Looks like a totally forgotten one. :)

http://www.expressbuzz.com/edition/story.aspx?Title=Elevated+expressway+opposed&artid=WD1e5b5MvNU=&SectionID=lifojHIWDUU=&MainSectionID=lifojHIWDUU=&SEO=Kalakshetra&SectionName=rSY|6QYp3kQ=

The open air theatre at Kalakshetra in Chennai witnessed an unusual congregation: the city’s rich and elite joining hands with the less privileged in voicing their reservations and protest against the proposed elevated express highway project. They want the government to give up the Rs 1,000-crore elevated expressway from Marina Beach to Kottivakkam. “We are making an effort to save our beaches. If the project becomes a reality, the beaches will no longer be the same. The only open spaces in Chennai Elliots, Thiruvanmiyur and Marina Beach will be lost forever,” said M G Devasahayam, a retired bureaucrat and managing trustee, SUSTAIN, an NGO.The project will change the face of the residential areas on the entire stretch. It will erase out 594 houses, 14 commercial buildings, six public utility buildings and three places of worship. Once the construction begins, the area known for its serenity will be filled with noise, fumes and building debris.
These were a few issues raised at a seminar on “Chennai’s Elevated Expressways: A problem or a solution”, organised at the Kalakshetra on Sunday by the newly formed forum - Save Chennai Beaches.
The members of the forum alleged that apart from defacing the beaches, the project would adversely affect fishing activity, displace costal residents, disturb nestling of the Olive Ridely turtles and damage ecologically sensitive areas such as the Theosophical Society and Adyar estuary. At the seminar, people from different walks of life- members of fishermen community, environmentalists, experts on traffic and residents of Besant Nagar and Thiruvanmiyur voiced their views.
“The fishermen community will lose its livelihood. We might be rehabilitated at some other place, which will be far away from the seas. If we don’t have an easy access to the sea, how are we going to make a living?” wondered K Saravanan, a representative from the fishermen community of Urur Kuppam. Arun from the Environment and Sea Turtle Conservation Network said the project would disturb the nestling Olive Ridely turtles and will become a threat to other aquatic mammals like dolphins. The rare species of birds and plants found on the beaches would soon become extinct.
Explore other options, say campaigners
CHENNAI: The campaigners of Save Chennai Beaches pointed out that there was a need to explore other options to ease traffic congestion in the city as the express highway project was against the principles of sustainable transportation and it is impossible to design it as an independent roadway. The expressway is inaccessible to pedestrians and cyclists and also creates adverse visual and aesthetic impacts, besides causing air and noise pollution. The elevated corridors are only for the purpose of enabling cars and two- wheelers to move at a high-speed and not for facilitating the movement of public transport. Incompatible land uses may lead to acute congestion on approach roads and there could be disastrous consequences in the event of accidents or breakdowns.
NL Rajah who spoke on the legal implications of the project said, “We have to explore other options to ease the traffic congestion in the city,” adding that both phases violated the environment rules and the Costal Regulation Zone notification of 1991.
The campaigners pointed out that there was a leaked version of the feasibility study report available on their website www.sipcotcuddalore.com, on population and urbanisation affected by the project. It estimates the population of this area as 1.009 lakhs, which was hardly 0.162 percent of the total state population and urbanisation rate in the project area was 100 percent. The project area shows high literacy levels at 77.37 percent and female literacy level (47 percent) is less as the project area is along the coast and inhabited by fishermen community.
A good number of participants advocated for up-gradation of existing road links and intersections and provisions for missing links as a solution for easing the traffic congestion. Synchronisation and rationalisation of signals will enhance the movement of traffic. There were also recommendations to bring in stringent rules relating to parking of vehicles.

There may be a change in the alighnment of the elevated corridor from santhome to adyar due to the big pressure put up by South Chennai residents.

Malar Hospital side may be connected from Foreshore estate along the existing Kamaraj Salai, Greenways road (Foreshore Estate - Ambedkar Mandapam - Music College Junction - Sathya Studios - Malar Hospital side road running along Adyar.) If they include broadening of the bridge across Adyar near Malar Hospital, it will be better.

^^I don't know if there are any plans for widening the Adyar bridge. Instead, they're renovating the existing "dilapidated" bridge parallel to the current one. But dunno about the current status.

^^.. Correct me if i am wrong. I think u r talking about the high speed circular road alignment(connection b/w Adyar corridor and Elevated beach expressway). The oppposition from the South chennai residents is for beach elevated expressway which cannot be changed as per ur above post as it might disrupt either Adyar Ecopark or Theosophical society

they should definitely build a nice road from lighthouse to greenways road. can think of a tunnel road to connect besant nagar (long term plan) but considering how the TN govt can make a hash of simple things, I don't have much hope.

Construction work on the 19-km long elevated highway — the longest of its kind in the country — connecting Chennai Port with Maduravoyal via Koyambedu traffic junction will begin in November.
According to sources in the government, Hyderabad-based Soma Enterprise Limited, which is implementing the Chennai Metro Rail project, will construct the four-lane elevated highway on a Build-Operate-and-Transfer (BOT) basis. The project is scheduled to be completed in three years.
“The project will be impleted at a cost of Rs 1,500 crore, including Rs 345 crore towards land acquisition, resettlement and rehabilitation of families to be evicted along the Cooum river. The toll highway, which is aimed at providing better connectivity for heavy vehicles to the Chennai Port, will reduce traffic congestion on Poonamallee High Road,” sources in the Union surface transport ministry told The Times of India.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had laid the foundation stone for the project last January, saying that it would facilitate quick movement of cargo from Chennai Port to other parts of the country through the golden quadrilateral corridor.
“This project is one more important milestone in the ambitious road programme of the government that will transform the country’s transport sector, give a boost to industry and integrate the economy,” Singh had said during the inauguration.
The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) obtained environmental clearance from the National Coastal Zone Management Authority for the construction of the elevated highway last month.
“While 12,000 families along the Cooum river have to be resettled for implementation of the project, PWD and Tamil Nadu Slum Clearance Board have already begun acquisition of land and resettlement and rehabilitation of the families to be evicted,” sources said.
The elevated highway will go along the Cooum river till Koyambedu and from there go on the middle of Poonamallee High Road upto Maduravoyal. Starting from War Memorial gate of the Chennai Port Trust, it will first cross the elevated MRTS railway line between Chintadripet and Park Town Stations and then cross College Road, Nungambakkam, Chetpet, Choolaimedu railway bridge, Arumbakkam to reach Koyambedu.
It will have entry ramps at Sivananda Salai and College Road and exit ramps at Kamarajar Salai and Spur Tank Road. The Koyambedu junction will have both entry and exit ramps. Toll plazas will be set up at Spur Tank Road and Maduravoyal.
The NHAI has already completed a three-km long elevated highway, the first of its kind in the state, through the Ambattur Industrial Estate as a part of the Chennai Bypass-II project and will be opened for traffic once the project is over.
NUTS AND BOLTS
The project will be implemented at a cost of Rs 1,500 crore
Hyderabad-based Soma Enterprises, which is implementing the Metro Rail project, has bagged the contract for the highway
Construction work will begin in November and is scheduled to be completed in 3 years
The highway will go along Cooum river till Koyambedu and go over the middle of Poonamallee High Road from Koyambedu to Maduravoyal
The elevated highway will have entry ramps at Sivananda Salai, College Road and Koyambedu. Exit ramps will come up at Kamarajar Salai, Spur Tank Road and Koyambedu
Toll plazas will be put up at Spur Tank Road and Maduravoyal.

http://img196.imageshack.us/img196/3342/getimagejf.jpg

Source: TOI

Construction work on the 19-km long elevated highway — the longest of its kind in the country — connecting Chennai Port with Maduravoyal via Koyambedu traffic junction will begin in November.
According to sources in the government, Hyderabad-based Soma Enterprise Limited, which is implementing the Chennai Metro Rail project, will construct the four-lane elevated highway on a Build-Operate-and-Transfer (BOT) basis. The project is scheduled to be completed in three years.
“The project will be impleted at a cost of Rs 1,500 crore, including Rs 345 crore towards land acquisition, resettlement and rehabilitation of families to be evicted along the Cooum river. The toll highway, which is aimed at providing better connectivity for heavy vehicles to the Chennai Port, will reduce traffic congestion on Poonamallee High Road,” sources in the Union surface transport ministry told The Times of India.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had laid the foundation stone for the project last January, saying that it would facilitate quick movement of cargo from Chennai Port to other parts of the country through the golden quadrilateral corridor.
“This project is one more important milestone in the ambitious road programme of the government that will transform the country’s transport sector, give a boost to industry and integrate the economy,” Singh had said during the inauguration.
The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) obtained environmental clearance from the National Coastal Zone Management Authority for the construction of the elevated highway last month.
“While 12,000 families along the Cooum river have to be resettled for implementation of the project, PWD and Tamil Nadu Slum Clearance Board have already begun acquisition of land and resettlement and rehabilitation of the families to be evicted,” sources said.
The elevated highway will go along the Cooum river till Koyambedu and from there go on the middle of Poonamallee High Road upto Maduravoyal. Starting from War Memorial gate of the Chennai Port Trust, it will first cross the elevated MRTS railway line between Chintadripet and Park Town Stations and then cross College Road, Nungambakkam, Chetpet, Choolaimedu railway bridge, Arumbakkam to reach Koyambedu.
It will have entry ramps at Sivananda Salai and College Road and exit ramps at Kamarajar Salai and Spur Tank Road. The Koyambedu junction will have both entry and exit ramps. Toll plazas will be set up at Spur Tank Road and Maduravoyal.
The NHAI has already completed a three-km long elevated highway, the first of its kind in the state, through the Ambattur Industrial Estate as a part of the Chennai Bypass-II project and will be opened for traffic once the project is over.
NUTS AND BOLTS
The project will be implemented at a cost of Rs 1,500 crore
Hyderabad-based Soma Enterprises, which is implementing the Metro Rail project, has bagged the contract for the highway
Construction work will begin in November and is scheduled to be completed in 3 years
The highway will go along Cooum river till Koyambedu and go over the middle of Poonamallee High Road from Koyambedu to Maduravoyal
The elevated highway will have entry ramps at Sivananda Salai, College Road and Koyambedu. Exit ramps will come up at Kamarajar Salai, Spur Tank Road and Koyambedu
Toll plazas will be put up at Spur Tank Road and Maduravoyal.

http://img196.imageshack.us/img196/3342/getimagejf.jpg

Source: TOI


Looks like TOI has goofed up again. The expressway runs along the cooum river. However the map shows it cutting right across the city between Koyambedu and choolaimedu. :bash:

.

we can expect TOI coming back with a new map with 'new' coovum flowing the path of expressway and 'old' coovum flowing parallel.

Chennai: There will be no change to the alignment of the proposed elevated expressway from Chennai Port to Maduravoyal despite objections raised by the Ministry of Environment and Forest (MoEF).

The proposed 19-km expressway will start from Chennai Port and continue along the banks of the Cooum till Koyambedu. From Koyambedu, it would ply at the centre of the existing road up to Maduravoyal on Chennai bypass.

The Expert Appraisal Committee for Coastal Regulation Zone (Infrastructure Development and Miscellaneous projects), MoEF, found part of this proposed road falling in the inter-tidal zone (between high tide line and low tide line) along the Cooum which is in violation of the Coastal Regulation Zone Rules and suggested that the alignment be revised.

Earlier, in January, the Tamil Nadu State Coastal Zone Management Authority (TNSCZMA) also made the same observation and recommended that the project must not be built in the inter-tidal zone and should fall beyond the HTL on the landward side of the Cooum.

About 34.58 ha of the proposed elevated road falls within the CRZ and of the 506 foundation pits proposed, 35 fall in the river bed.

The Chennai Port Trust has proposed the project and the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) is the implementing agency for its development, maintenance and management. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh laid the foundation stone for this project in January.

Sources at the Chennai Port Trust and NHAI said it would be impossible to change the alignment. The Chennai Port Trust has informed the TNSCZMA that the expressway will run at a height of 7 m above the existing banks of the river and will be constructed on pillars. Hence, it argued that the environmental impact in the inter tidal zone is not comparable to that of construction at the ground level. The TNSCZMA has accepted the Chennai Port Trusts’ arguments and has changed its earlier objections. It has now recommended the Elevated Expressway for the MoEF’s clearance.

Sources at the MoEF told The Hindu that the project is in violation of the CRZ rules and the Chennai Port Trust has not done the Environment Impact Assessment (EIA).

The feasibility report, submitted by Wilbur Smith Associates, consultants to the project, claims that the elevated expressway is not a new national highway and hence EIA is not mandatory.

http://www.hindu.com/2009/10/07/stories/2009100758230200.htm

^^ :righton:

moved to "chennai and ennore ports" thread

..

http://www.dailythanthi.com/article.asp?NewsID=525512&disdate=11/7/2009&advt=2

Eviction begins on Ethiraj Salai for elevated highway

Julie Mariappan | TNN

Chennai: The clearing of land on Ethiraj Salai for the ambitious elevated highway connecting Port and Maduravoyal began on Friday. Officials of the Public Works Department, Revenue and the Tamil Nadu Slum Clearance Board (TNSCB) joined hands in the exercise.

About 34 hutments in Rettamalai Srinivasan Nagar, on the embankment of the Cooum near Ethiraj Salai, were removed on day one.

There was a bit of tension when some dwellers, not in the list of beneficiaries, demanded proper rehabilitation. “Despite showing proof of residence, the officials did not consider us. We cannot find accommodation, as house owners in the city demand huge advances and rents.We have to keep all our belongings on the road-side,” said M Lalitha, a resident in that area.

“We had intimated all noneligible dwellers before today’s exercise but they did not move out,” said a senior PWD official. After a detailed enumeration three months ago, the TNSCB found 7,600 families to be eligible for resettlement. About 1,290 families spread over an area of 9.1 km, 50% of the project site, will be relocated in the Board’s high-rise tenements in Thoraipakkam off the IT Corridor in South Chennai.

The rest will be accomodated in the TNSCB’s proposed tenements in other parts of the city. “Different sites are being identified. Till then the Board will pay Rs 1,000 a month to each affected family for 21 months,” TNSCB sources said. According to eligibility criteria of the Board, families should stay on government-owned land before the cut-off date (June 2006) besides holding documentary proof of evidence like family cards and voter ID cards.

In the initial phase, the PWD wants to clear ‘obstructions’ from 5.4 km of embankment, between Ethiraj Salai and Chetpet. “At least 50% of the required land for the highway will have to be given to the National Highways Authority of India by November-end,” sources said.

Hyderabad-based Soma Enterprise Limited, which is implementing the Chennai Metro Rail, will construct the 19-km long four-lane elevated highway on a Build-Operate-Transfer basis. The project scheduled to complete in three years at a cost of Rs 1,500 crore.

TOI

^^

Still there is no ground works or visible progress in port expressway other than land clearing?

The stretch between Ethiraj rd and Spur tank rd has less no. of slums when compared to the other parts... may b thats y they r targetting this first...

Duplicate

CHENNAI: Preliminary work for the elevated highway project connecting Chennai port and Maduravoyal has gained momentum, with government agencies

the Public Works Department (PWD), Slum Clearance Board (SCB) and the revenue department clearing encroachments. On the second day of clearing operations, 433 hutments on the embankment of the Cooum river near Spur Tank Road were bulldozed and families evicted. On Friday, 34 families were evicted from hutments near Ethiraj Salai.

The National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) is laying the 19-km-long elevated highway to facilitate free movement of heavy vehicles. For long, container operators had demanded the construction of such a highway, forced as they were to take the congested Koyambedu and Poonamallee High Road routes to the port.

According to officials, 433 families were staying near the Chetpet junction out of which 275 families were eligible for the resettlement and rehabilitation package of the state government. The cut-off date for eligibility criteria was June 2006. All eligible families were given accommodation in the Tamil Nadu Slum Clearance Board (TNSCB) tenements in Thoraipakkam near Rajiv Gandhi Salai.

Traffic was disrupted in Chetpet in the morning on Saturday after evicted residents placed their belongings on the road. Within hours, PWD officials arranged transportation. "We wasted no time in shifting the residents to Thoraipakkam because the formalities there have to be completed on time," said a senior official.

Though the city police had made elaborate security arrangements for eviction, the police faced a tough time driving away crowds who demanded resettlement. S Kalaivani, a resident, said that her family possessed a ration card and a voter identity card as proof of residence; she was denied rehabilitation. "We paid a huge sum to people who introduced themselves as officials to get us slots in Thoraipakkam. But now, people who have residential certificates from the local taluk office have managed to get allotment orders and we are left out," she said.

TNSCB is in talks with the government to pay Rs 1,000 a month to each of the affected families, for 21 months. "They will be accomodated in tenements that will come up soon in and around the city," an official said. The department will resume its eviction drive on Monday. Earlier, district collector V Shobana, along with a team of revenue officials, visited the site to oversee the drive.

Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/Elevated-highway-eviction-433-hutments-razed-in-Chetpet-slum/articleshow/5231473.cms

http://www.dailythanthi.com/article.asp?NewsID=528243&disdate=11/19/2009

Slum kids facing eviction seek CM’s help (http://www.expressbuzz.com/edition/story.aspx?Title=Slum+kids+facing+eviction+seek+CM%E2%80%99s+help&artid=XqL70l0hGgk=&SectionID=lifojHIWDUU=&MainSectionID=lifojHIWDUU=&SEO=&SectionName=rSY|6QYp3kQ=)
http://www.expressbuzz.com/Images/article/2009/11/30/30nov_slum.jpg

Students from the slums in Choolaimedu staging a demonstration against the demolition of their houses, in the city on Sunday.
Express News Service
First Published : 30 Nov 2009 04:12:00 AM IST
Last Updated : 30 Nov 2009 04:56:55 PM IST

CHENNAI: The children of slum dwellers, who face eviction under the proposed elevated Expressway between Chennai port and Maduravoyal on Sunday made a fervent plea to Chief Minister M Karunanidhi to intervene in the matter and rescue them.

These 300 slum children who signed the letter affectionately addressed him as ‘Kalaignar Thatha’. The letter goes on to read as, “You gave us nutritious meals. You gave us free education. You gave us muttais (eggs). Now why are you forcing us get muttais (ciphers) in our exams?’’.

The children asked Karunanidhi not to demolish their houses now, in the middle of their academic session. These children, studying in the nearby schools, fear that if forced to resettle in hovels in far-off areas like Kannagi Nagar, it would be a Herculean task for them to commute everyday. The slums are being demolished by the government to pave the way for what is billed as India’s longest four-way elevated expressway from the Chennai port to Maduravoyal, at a cost of Rs 1,655 crore stretching 19 km along the banks of the Cooum river.

Most of the slums which were evicted are along Cooum in Choolaimedu and Chetpet area. M Perumal, Secretary of Tamil Nadu Slumdwellers Association said ``there are lot of children who are in class 10 and class 12. This eviction, which comes in the middle of the year, will largely impact their studies.”

Apprehending eviction to make way for the proposed elevated expressway, hut-dwellers from Appasamy Street in Chetpet have got a stay order from the high court to stop the eviction drive, but even after that the government continued their demolition drive.

So far 400 houses in Spurtank Road, Chepet, 590 houses from Appaswamy street, 400 from Joythiammal Street , Eraettaimalai Srinivasan Nagar 120 house were demolished. These project it likely to evict at least 30,000 families who dwell along the Cooum river, which are mostly slums. The government propose to send them to Kannagi Nagar, Asia’s largest Slum resettlement colony.

Housing Rights Campaign, an NGO, says proximity to the place of work holds the key to the slum-dwellers most of whom are employed as domestic workers. If they are resettled in far-flung areas, they run the risk of losing their jobs. With the State government high on an ambitious mission to make Chennai “slum-free by 2013,” tough times are ahead for slum-dwellers, especially those living in 122 objectionable slums.

^^ thats something serious to consider. Resettling 30,000 families is something that needs better attention and surely more effort towards EFFECTIVE resettlement should have been considered.

Demolission, and resettlement has often caused conflict between the state and the dwellers so many times in the past. Why is still there no effective branches in the government that ensures that resettlement doesnt affect peoples life so badly ? Shame. Also I don't think grouping up of many 'slum' people into a large colony is a good idea. Yes indeed it is good for easy governance but how about the life of the settlers ? How about finding local job, transportation costs, schools etc ? I think there should be some laws concerning the size and distance any family can be 'displaced' along with better sources to manage the longer term needs of the resettlers. ie. school, work, hospital etc

^^

I think the road was under discussion a lot of time may be for more than two years , a modest intelligent person would have moved to another location by this time.

In order to winsome you have to loose some.

^^it's a serious problem though..and at the same time a tricky issue. Are they planning to start constructing pillars in the next 3 - 4 months? Given that it is 19 km long, can they not schedule it in such a way that this area is untouched for another 4 months?? Only thing is that this should not set a precedence and people all along the 19 km shouldn't come up with such requests. All said and done, we cannot afford to delay this project anymore.

Though it is a pity to see these children having problem with resettlement ...

As some one said they would have known about these resettlements earlier ... their parents are to b blamed ... y the hell they settle in these places ... they use these poor children as factor to slow the eviction :wallbash: Emotional blackmailing :bash:

Is this place near the port section or further away .. so that they can start building pillars and all such things near port .. and by the time they reach this place academic year will be over :)

^^I dont think they will build pillar by pillar. It should be simultaneous work across the entire stretch and it only makes sense to clear the entire area if that is the proposed way of construction. But the situation of these kids are touchy. However they should not be partial to one section of the mass alone. This might lead to protests in other areas too. In a way its good to see that people are forced to leave the slums, else they will never leave. Am sure they can live in better conditions if they shift to Kannagi Nagar

SHIFTING SLUM DWELLERS:
Most of the people who were / are living along Cooum, Adyar and B Canal are being shifted to mainly Kannagi Nagar off Thoraipakkam on the bank of B Canal.

PWD and TNSCB started constructing additional new tenements at this location in a big way. But due to CRZ II rules and so many other goof ups from the Dept side, all the works have been stopped. The contractors who were awarded the works have already done pilings and some above the ground also and are into a big loss.

This may seriously affect the further migration to this location.

Another issue which I can not substantiate with proof:
Most of the pickpockets, petty thieves, chain snatchers - charge sheeters have been shifted from all the slums to this area to have effective control over them, it seems.
This has created a huge problem in the Southern Suburbs - These guys know only their past profession and they they are now living in a pucca flat and trying their skills in the southern suburbs.

Elevated Highway along Besant Nagar Beach:

I noticed that beach near Adyar estuary is being cleaned and levelled. The grapevine says that the Govt may go ahead despite the warnings and protests from the environmentally conscious people.

The residents of Besant Nagar may start a vigilance squad to keep an eye on the development; otherwise one day suddenly they may find the Elliots Beach being raped royally with a huge eyesore called the Elevated Expressway.

^^

I think the road was under discussion a lot of time may be for more than two years , a modest intelligent person would have moved to another location by this time.

In order to winsome you have to loose some.

so if your parent's house is in the way ouf some expressway.... as reported in media, no eviction warning etc given you will be happy to sell your parent's house and ask them to move to a new suburb in the outskirts of Chennai within a year ? Please be practical. There is severe emotional, financial and practical problems with such evictions.

It doesnt mean govt. has to stop all plans for the future. It simply means govt. simply will have to learn to make sure that the people who are affected are not left in the dark like this.

btw this is what life is like in Kannagi Nagar..

CHENNAI: A day after they were packed off to Kannagi Nagar off Rajiv Gandhi Salai from their houses on Langs Garden Road in Pudupet, many families still have not been able to occupy their new houses. Their belongings have been kept on the road and no provision had been made for drinking water, families said.

A total of 1,260 families that had encroached upon land belonging to the Public Works Department and many of whose homes had been destroyed in a recent fire are being shifted by the district administration to Kannagi Nagar as part of rehabilitation measures.

With the families finding the houses constructed by the Tamil Nadu Slum Clearance Board (TNSCB) still incomplete in many aspects, many of them were forced to spend the night in utter misery.

“We were brought here on Tuesday morning by 10 a.m. and we were not allowed inside the houses till late evening. When we entered the houses, they were filled with dust and rubbish. There is no electricity and the toilets are clogged with the pipeline broken in many places,” said Nandakumar, a resident who had moved to Kannagi Nagar on Tuesday.

Manju, another resident, said there was no facility for them to cook and that they were forced to buy food from outside. She said that mothers with infants found it most difficult. “There is no water here for us to bathe or wash clothes. It has been two days since we left the comfort of our homes inside the city,” she added.

Another resident asked why the houses were not repaired and readied for occupation before they were shifted to the new place. Others alleged that they were given only photocopies of their allotment orders.

Later, TNSCB Managing Director T. K. Ramachandran told The Hindu that those resettled from Pudupet were being provided with houses that have been built a few months ago. “But the problem is that anti-social elements in the area are misusing them and in some places, damaging property. We have begun repair work and the houses will be ready for occupation in a couple of days,” he added.

He said that until Chennai Metrowater was able to provide piped water supply, the Board would ensure supply of water through tankers. On the issue of maintaining Kannagi Nagar, Mr. Ramachandran said there was need to set up a proper institution for managing the area.

ps. this article was from a year ago, hopefully it will be marginalyl better now, but I doubt if it is ideal by any means even now.

so if your parent's house is in the way ouf some expressway.... as reported in media, no eviction warning etc given you will be happy to sell your parent's house and ask them to move to a new suburb in the outskirts of Chennai within a year ? Please be practical. There is severe emotional, financial and practical problems with such evictions.

It doesnt mean govt. has to stop all plans for the future. It simply means govt. simply will have to learn to make sure that the people who are affected are not left in the dark like this.

btw this is what life is like in Kannagi Nagar..



ps. this article was from a year ago, hopefully it will be marginalyl better now, but I doubt if it is ideal by any means even now.


MR.Fusionist i think robertashok meant was if ur house illegal .. then y build it .. They are evicting slum people , who have encroached the banks of a city waterway ... The encroachment itself is illegal ...

MR.Fusionist i think robertashok meant was if ur house illegal .. then y build it .. They are evicting slum people , who have encroached the banks of a city waterway ... The encroachment itself is illegal ...

ofcourse I know the difference between encroachmwent and legal buildings. I was addressing the issue of the problems of eviction and resettlement and not ( the issue about eviction itself, which I didnt question ). Also from the perspective of resettlement issues it really should matter if the resettler is a 'slum' dweller or a private landlord.

ofcourse I know the difference between encroachmwent and legal buildings. I was addressing the issue of the problems of eviction and resettlement and not ( the issue about eviction itself, which I didnt question ). Also from the perspective of resettlement issues it really should matter if the resettler is a 'slum' dweller or a private landlord.

I believe a common minimum facilities must be agreed upon, such as plumbing, electricity and water and basic sanitation, cleanliness .. the rest such as unfinished/unplastered walls, lack of woodworks, closets should be agreeable to the slumdwellers or encroachers. They got a legal asset in their name..free of cost.


If only the KK has evinced the same interest on the KannagiNagar properties as what he bestowed upon building his own abode @ Assembly Building!!! :bash:

so if your parent's house is in the way ouf some expressway.... as reported in media, no eviction warning etc given you will be happy to sell your parent's house and ask them to move to a new suburb in the outskirts of Chennai within a year ? Please be practical. There is severe emotional, financial and practical problems with such evictions.

It doesnt mean govt. has to stop all plans for the future. It simply means govt. simply will have to learn to make sure that the people who are affected are not left in the dark like this.

btw this is what life is like in Kannagi Nagar..



ps. this article was from a year ago, hopefully it will be marginalyl better now, but I doubt if it is ideal by any means even now.




I was living in pammal and shifted to pallavaram once the airport issue came along, i know i was in a position to afford things [it was difficult for us well],but the elevated road was now or somewhere down the line in future. so people living legally should have done something properly.

CHENNAI: The draft feasibility report for the high-speed circular transportation corridor, which includes the much-awaited bus rapid transport system (BRTS), is likely to be ready next week.

According to sources in the Tamil Nadu Urban Development Fund (TNUDF), work on the first phase of the corridor, from Adyar to Porur, will begin with the preparation of a detailed project report after the draft feasibility report is finalised.

The sources also revealed that the corridor was likely to have only one layer and not two or three as planned previously

Source: TOI (http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/Govt-revises-plan-for-citys-elevated-road/articleshow/5294165.cms)

CHENNAI: The draft feasibility report for the high-speed circular transportation corridor, which includes the much-awaited bus rapid transport system (BRTS), is likely to be ready next week.

According to sources in the Tamil Nadu Urban Development Fund (TNUDF), work on the first phase of the corridor, from Adyar to Porur, will begin with the preparation of a detailed project report after the draft feasibility report is finalised.

The sources also revealed that the corridor was likely to have only one layer and not two or three as planned previously

Source: TOI (http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/Govt-revises-plan-for-citys-elevated-road/articleshow/5294165.cms)

Only one tier? Wouldn't that significantly reduce the amount of roadspace that's gonna be added? This feels like a let down to me, I dunno abt others.

Only one tier? Wouldn't that significantly reduce the amount of roadspace that's gonna be added? This feels like a let down to me, I dunno abt others.

This road is along Adyar river bank. They may encroach upon waterway area for the road. Serious enviro issues are involved.

Most areas are CRZ II (Inland waterway in a developed neighbourhood). Generally no construction is allowed above ground upto 100 metres from the high tde line. (There are a few exceptions like - if a road has been existent between HTL and the site for more than x years, construction may be allowed blah blah).

Multi storeyed construction may not justify the revenue saved / spent. A detailed analysis may be needed.

This road is along Adyar river bank. They may encroach upon waterway area for the road. Serious enviro issues are involved.

Most areas are CRZ II (Inland waterway in a developed neighbourhood). Generally no construction is allowed above ground upto 100 metres from the high tde line. (There are a few exceptions like - if a road has been existent between HTL and the site for more than x years, construction may be allowed blah blah).

Multi storeyed construction may not justify the revenue saved / spent. A detailed analysis may be needed.

Oh, Thanks for that info :), but if there are environmental issues, would they be significantly different when there are more Tiers? I learned that the emissions from vehicles plying on these roads would get deposited on the road and later dissolve in the run off water during rains, and they also directly dissolve in the river water, polluting it thereby (I read this somewhere, I don't remember where exactly). I'm not really aware of the other major environmental issues in question here.

I dont understand how an elevated road will encroach more upon the waterway area than just the one layer would.

If there was an issue with regulations, wouldn't that have come up when they did the pre feasibility report?

I agree with you in that more detailed analysis of the final feasibility draft would throw more light.

I still feel let down by this news, because having two tiers with one dedicated to the BRTS and the other to private vehicles seemed to make sense.

has the work started for chennai port - maduravoyal elevated expressway??? any update on this??? Deputy CM told the work will start in the month of november. now december is almost over...... or is it one more project like hogenakkal and sethu samudram....

@rsthe smart:

First of all, the Govt does not want to get into acquisition problem and so happy to use the banks of the rivers/ waterways, which are govt lands. There are many issues here.

The banks of the Adyar, Cooum rivers and B Canals are being shifted inward encroaching the waterways. The IRS satellite photo taken during the 60s, 80s, 90s and post Tsunami have clearly established that Adyar river width has shrunk exponentially over these years. During Tsunami a few acres of land behind the St Patricks / St Michaels were washed off as they were within the waterways.

The construction activity uses the nearby areas also for storing the materials and concrete mixing etc thus encraoching more areas. Post construction, the debris stay there and slowly filled up to reclaim as fresh land. More tiers mean more debris and more areas.

There will be lot of developments along these roads like petty shops, eateries, auto service centres etc even though the Govt does not plan for the same.

Unless they get into all these issues, this project may become an eco disaster.

@rsthe smart:

First of all, the Govt does not want to get into acquisition problem and so happy to use the banks of the rivers/ waterways, which are govt lands. There are many issues here.

The banks of the Adyar, Cooum rivers and B Canals are being shifted inward encroaching the waterways. The IRS satellite photo taken during the 60s, 80s, 90s and post Tsunami have clearly established that Adyar river width has shrunk exponentially over these years. During Tsunami a few acres of land behind the St Patricks / St Michaels were washed off as they were within the waterways.

The construction activity uses the nearby areas also for storing the materials and concrete mixing etc thus encraoching more areas. Post construction, the debris stay there and slowly filled up to reclaim as fresh land. More tiers mean more debris and more areas.

There will be lot of developments along these roads like petty shops, eateries, auto service centres etc even though the Govt does not plan for the same.

Unless they get into all these issues, this project may become an eco disaster.

That sounds terrible. I guess the avg layman like me wouldn't really realize all the complications and consequences of these major infra projects unless all these issues are explained clearly. I really hope the government tries to keep the long term interests of the neighborhood in mind while planning and executing these projects. Thanks for that info Kannan :)

CHENNAI: Panchayats of several fishing villages, including Mullai Kuppam, Mullai Nagar, Srinivasapuram, Urur Kuppam, Olcott Kuppam, Odai Kuppam, Odaimanagar, Thiruvanmiyur North Kuppam, Thiruvanmiyur South Kuppam, Kottivakkam Kuppam, on Monday, adopted a resolution against the Tamil Nadu Highways Department’s proposal to run a 7.5-km long elevated expressway along the beach.


The Urur Kuppam Panchayat Mahasabhai of all fishing villages between Marina and Kottivakkam adopted the resolution after a December 6 meeting called for a detailed debate on the burning issue.

Addressing the media, the leaders said the expressway will result in evictions of fishing and other low-income settlements, and will totally disrupt the livelihoods of the community during and after construction.

http://expressbuzz.com/edition/story.aspx?Title=Chennai+kuppams+resolve+to+fight+beach+highway&artid=|f5D59F81c4=&SectionID=lifojHIWDUU=&MainSectionID=wIcBMLGbUJI=&SectionName=rSY|6QYp3kQ=&SEO=

According to the resolution, at least 1,207 households will be evicted to construct the road.

Stating that the Rs 1200-crore proposal had nothing to do with the commuting difficulties faced by the city’s poor, they pointed out that the road was being constructed to help the elite private vehicle owners.

The Final Feasibility Report prepared by Wilbur Smith clearly states that the expressway will not be open to public transport buses. The fishermen leaders quoted from the Wilbur Smith report to highlight that fishing villages will be temporarily relocated during construction.

The resolution would be submitted to the Chief Minister, Deputy Chief Minister, Highways Department Secretary, Chief Secretary, Fisheries Minister, Minister (Environment), Minister (Forests).

Over the coming weeks, a delegation of representatives will meet relevant officials to press their demands. Fishermen leaders have said that they will gather support from other coastal residents and supporters across the nation and the world to oppose the elevated highway until the proposal is dropped.

PAVING WAY FOR ELEVATED ROAD
Court nod to evict Cooum encroachers
TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai: Paving the way for the expeditious commencement of the Elevated Expressway project from Chennai Port to Madhuravoyal, the Madras high court has permitted the government to evict encroachers from the banks of the Cooum at Chetpet.
Concurring with the s u b m i s - sions of additional advocate-general P Wilson and dismissing the writ appeals of 101 encroachers, the first bench comprising Chief Justice HL Gokhale and Justice KK Sasidharan said they could opt for shifting to the alternative sites allocated by the government up to January 21. “In the event they do not exercise their options, it will be open to the authorities to take steps to get the areas in question cleared, in accordance with law,” the bench said.
The appellants, who occupy the Cooum banks at Appasamy Street in Chetpet, claimed that they were residing there for 40 to 50 years. They, however, could not furnish any material to prove the claim.
The additional advocategeneral told the court that they were evicted from the there in 2006 and that they returned later. On the arguments that they be allowed at least till the academic year gets over, Wilson said the alternative site offered had good schools and transport facilities. He added that other persons similarly occupying the Cooum banks had exercised the option to be shifted and relocated at alternative sites.
He said the relocation process was still continuing, though the one-week time given to the encroachers had lapsed a long time ago.

PAVING WAY FOR ELEVATED ROAD
Court nod to evict Cooum encroachers
TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai: Paving the way for the expeditious commencement of the Elevated Expressway project from Chennai Port to Madhuravoyal, the Madras high court has permitted the government to evict encroachers from the banks of the Cooum at Chetpet.
Concurring with the s u b m i s - sions of additional advocate-general P Wilson and dismissing the writ appeals of 101 encroachers, the first bench comprising Chief Justice HL Gokhale and Justice KK Sasidharan said they could opt for shifting to the alternative sites allocated by the government up to January 21. “In the event they do not exercise their options, it will be open to the authorities to take steps to get the areas in question cleared, in accordance with law,” the bench said.
The appellants, who occupy the Cooum banks at Appasamy Street in Chetpet, claimed that they were residing there for 40 to 50 years. They, however, could not furnish any material to prove the claim.
The additional advocategeneral told the court that they were evicted from the there in 2006 and that they returned later. On the arguments that they be allowed at least till the academic year gets over, Wilson said the alternative site offered had good schools and transport facilities. He added that other persons similarly occupying the Cooum banks had exercised the option to be shifted and relocated at alternative sites.
He said the relocation process was still continuing, though the one-week time given to the encroachers had lapsed a long time ago.

:cheers::)

hai friends...should we need a elevated highway the beach? plz write ur opinion..

^^ Karthik I am not against building elevated roads along beaches, but it just needs to be done with care and not affect the ecosystem. I raised a point sometime back regd this quoting an example in Dubai. The Palm islands in Dubai which was built on artificial land in the sea had raised enourmous amount of speculations that it will affect the marine life and supporting ecosystems. But after completing the project they have found that marine life has actually been flourishing the same way if not better. So lets not assume that a flyover will affect the marine life...everybody is talking only with assumptions and nobody is sure it will definitely affect or wont. What if it affects is the fear everybdy has...but i leave it to the govt to decide and I am no expert in this field to criticise them for this.

We worry about marine life being affected by a bridge. The problems are elsewhere. Hundreds of Millions of gallons of untreated sewage is let out into sea thanks to incompetent organizations like CWSSB. Vast amounts of plastic and other garbage is let out into the sea during the monsoons. There is another ridiculous idea to lay a pipeline from tirupur, vellore, ambur etc. to carry effluents from dyeing units/tanneries to the Bay of Bengal. These are the things that should make people angry and not a bridge.

^^^^^^ Agree Completely......

There is another ridiculous idea to lay a pipeline from tirupur, vellore, ambur etc. to carry effluents from dyeing units/tanneries to the Bay of Bengal. These are the things that should make people angry and not a bridge.

venkatm: From tirupur or elsewhere no one cant let untreated effluents into sea.. they are going let treated water into sea.. what is the point in letting effluents into sea.. think man.. treated water if let into Noyyal river cant be used for irrigation.. so in order to maintain good capacity in orathupalayam dam for irrigation in Kankeyam district this is planned.. this is applicable for tannaries also..

See.. Already major dyeing units have treatment plants now the problems lies with small and medium scale units.. the state govenment has agreed to share the capitalization cost for the same.. more over govenment runs effluent treatment plants..

letting treated water into noyyal cant be used for irrigation purpose.. so a pipeline will be laid to let the treated water into sea.. ok.. :) and this is not a ridiculous idea it helps clean noyyal river water for agriculture..

No government will allow letting chemicals directly into sea or ocean..

You vastly underestimate our government and politicians. Who let such things spoil our rivers? Who is letting all legal and illegal sand mining destroy the rivers? The are still dillydallying on enforcing pollution control norms against the tanneries or dyeing units. Pallikaranai marsh is still being used as a garbage dump inspite of how many hundred articles coming up in Hindu and other media. They will legislate and argue in Supreme court to regularise and show leniency on illegal constructions. If they can get away with, our politicians will let anything happen for money or votes.

..

No government will allow letting chemicals directly into sea or ocean..

all the so-called treatment plants are for show only. they are never used/will never be used as they eat into profits. It is cheaper to bribe PCB/politicians/judges!

all the so-called treatment plants are for show only. they are never used/will never be used as they eat into profits. It is cheaper to bribe PCB/politicians/judges!

i like the word judges.. now a days judges are more corrupt.. see Dinakaran case since he is from SC they cant do anything...

back to our point.. i totally agree with ventkam and slakhs.. there are even more problems if you look at it.. but the pipeline system will be very effective.. i am expecting it will reduce pollution (especially ground water) immensely even if 50% of them use it properly in initial years.. see u can get rid of politicians and bribes..

if you guys want to discuss this more we will do it TN pollution thread..

ON THE FAST TRACK

Elevated road project from Maduravoyal to port to pick up pace
TIMES NEWS NETWORK

Chennai: A year after the Prime Minister inaugurated the Elevated Expressway, the project connecting Maduravoyal with the Chennai Port along the Cooum river is all set to pick up pace.
After a meeting of the agencies involved in the project — National Highways Authority of India, TN government and the Chennai Port Trust — the Union shipping secretary on January 18 asked the NHAI for details before the month-end to speed up the process.
The NHAI has already finalised the agreement for the 19-km four-lane elevated highway from Chennai Port to Madurovoyal awarding the project to a special purpose vehicle, Chennai Elevated Tollway Ltd, promoted by Hyderabad-based Soma Enterprise Ltd. The Rs 1,655-crore highway is being developed on BOT-Toll basis under a 15-year concession agreement including around three years of construction period.
NHAI officials said the preliminary work, including soil testing has already begun. The state government, on its part, has begun removing the encroachments along the Cooum river by resettling the slum dwellers in Semmencheri. Admitting that the project was a bit delayed as various government agencies had to work in tandem, NHAI and TN government officials said that the pace was picking up now.
As per the design, the elevated highway would be along NH-4 from Maduravoyal and Koyambedu from where it would travel along the banks of Cooum river till it reached the entrance to Chennai Port near Napier Bridge so that the trucks and containers could easily reach the port avoiding city traffic and without delay.
Meanwhile, the MoEF which rejected the proposal initially has asked Chennai Port Trust specific details for clearance under coastal regulation zone rules, officials said.
According to sources, the state’s coastal zone management authority had cleared the project saying there was a provision to build bridges for ports under CRZ rules. “We are confident that the union environment ministry will grant the CRZ clearance soon,’’ said a senior officer in Chennai Port Trust.

TOI

yes, i saw some kind of soil test is going on that stretch(koyembadu to maduravoyil)... nearly 4 to 5 places they have put up the same drilling machinery on the median of the that stretch... is poss.. will try to take some of the snaps and put it here tomo...

^^ cool.. Waiting for the pics :D

Why for past 6months CMRL and CETL are only doing soil testing? Taking long time!

2015 only we will get the elevated road and metro?

^^ Even that if we're lucky.. :P

Does any one see any rendering of this project as to how it would look especally from the port end


:nuts:

^^ Even that if we're lucky.. :P

I think project could be an eye wash. A project foundation stone laid by PM didn't get CRZ approval before?

CRZ nod denied again for Elevated Expressway

A. Srivathsan

Chennai: For the second time, the Ministry of Environment and Forest has refused clearance for the elevated expressway from Chennai Port to Maduravoyal proposed by the Chennai Port Trust.

The Expert Appraisal Committee for Coastal Regulation Zone (Infrastructure Development and Miscellaneous Projects), convened a few weeks ago, scrutinised the project and did not recommend it for Costal Regulation Zone (CRZ) clearance.

This time, the Chennai Port Trust argued that the project is neither a National Highway nor an expressway but only a connecting road between the port and the existing National Highway. Hence, it claimed that the project is permissible under CRZ Notification, 1991.

However, the expert committee was not convinced and has asked Chennai Port Trust to explain the basis on which this project is now presented as a link road.

It has also directed the Port Trust to obtain a clear recommendation from the Tamil Nadu State Coastal Zone Management Authority (TNSCZMA) that the proposed link road will be permissible under CRZ Notification.

The four-lane elevated expressway running for a length of 19 km is proposed by the Ministry of Shipping, Road Transport and Highways through National Highways Authority of India (NHAI). It is to be partly constructed along the Cooum and partly over Poonamallee High Road at a cost of Rs.1,655 crore.

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh laid the foundation stone for this project in January 2009. About 34.58 ha of the proposed elevated road falls within the CRZ and of the 506 foundation pits proposed, 35 fall in the riverbed.

When this project was first submitted for CRZ clearance in May 2009, the expert committee refused clearance stating that part of the proposed expressway fell between High Tide and Low Tide Lines and it was against the recommendations of the Tamil Nadu State Coastal Management Authority. The proposal was retuned with the suggestion that it be revised.

http://www.hindu.com/2010/01/22/stories/2010012258220500.htm

^^ This project is doomed...another IT highway kinda stuff :bash:

I seriously can't understand the practice of calling VIPs (like a PM) to inaugurate a project without even getting the basic clearance like the environmental clearance! :wallbash: For that matter, all projects are inaugurated first and only then even approvals for the "go-ahead" are obtained...this is a stupid practice...not sure who invented it :nuts: If the project is not a given a "go-ahead", even by the Govt's own ministries, isn't it a shame on the VIP (PM) who inaugurated it? :ohno:

To hell with people who just did a eyewash ceremony without even a basic clearance. Are they thinking people are fools.

^^ And already several crores would have been wasted in this process so far for what is not going to be reality. I don't know when we will see a full stop for the foundation stone laying ceremonies, inagurations etc. There are hundreds and thousands of projects in the state for which foundation stones were laid but the project never made any progress.

^^ MOEF has also to be realistic, pragmatic and practical. Whats the sense in talking about distance from HTL for coovum - this is a very seasonal river and in any case, they plan to build only the foundations within the 100 m of HTL and the structure itself is going to be metres above the river.

The SG should take up this matter with MoEF through Central Govt.

really dont understand, why they are mentioning high and low tides for Coovum whcih is non-flowing river and used as sewage disposal by everyone..
and one more thing by stating Coovum a non-flowing river they have already spend huge money to clean it.. jairam ramesh is playing a spoil sport in this issue.. already he has negative stand in mullaperiyar issue towads TN.. so getting CRZ permision is impossible till he is there..

how much money they have spent on inviting PM, CM and everyone for the function.. if CRZ team has to update the map it is using for this project.. there is no river called Coovum its a mere drianage..:ohno:

have any one in this forum seen Coovum flowing with clean water? :lol:
does it worth mentioning high and low tides :bash:

^^ They might have some future vision, as Cooum is going to be cleaned very shortly! :) Then it will get qualified to be called as a flowing river.

^^ do you know what is this 1.16699016 × 10^-8 hertz ! Just for fun google and see :nuts:

I have been working for various projects which need CRZ clearance. With that knowledge, I am commenting.

Any project which lies within CRZ (various zones - 1 to 5) needs Enviro clearance. For Chennai, it is generally Zone 1 - 500 metres from the sea HTL and Zone 2 - 100 metres from HTL of Inland waterway. We have Cooum, B.Canal and Adyar as major waterways and smaller ones like Mamabalam canal, Virugambakkam canal etc.

Our Govt Depts find it easy to encroach upon the banks of the waterways for projects as it is an easy way out. We have raped all our waterways and the water retaining lakes, ponds etc in the name of development - unorganised and hapazard.

MoEF is fully justified in denying the permission if the case was not presented with convincing arguments.

We need saner elements to maintain balance.

Does it mean that the BRTS and HSCTC projects might also get doomed? I was wondering how did they get approvals for MRTS.

Also, when the slum dwellers and industrial people misused, encroached and polluted the rivers and ocean, what CRZ was doing? Oh yeah, that is upto state government which was supposed to take action.

Whenever we have a development project initiated, which would help the common public in a big way, we have all these organizations talking about regulations..

Sometimes, it is GOOD to violate norms if it is going to help people in a big way. This project would help ease PH Road which is the second most busiest arterial road in chennai.

I have been working for various projects which need CRZ clearance. With that knowledge, I am commenting.

Any project which lies within CRZ (various zones - 1 to 5) needs Enviro clearance. For Chennai, it is generally Zone 1 - 500 metres from the sea HTL and Zone 2 - 100 metres from HTL of Inland waterway. We have Cooum, B.Canal and Adyar as major waterways and smaller ones like Mamabalam canal, Virugambakkam canal etc.

Our Govt Depts find it easy to encroach upon the banks of the waterways for projects as it is an easy way out. We have raped all our waterways and the water retaining lakes, ponds etc in the name of development - unorganised and hapazard.

MoEF is fully justified in denying the permission if the case was not presented with convincing arguments.

We need saner elements to maintain balance.

Kannan Sir,

how about Bandra Worli sea link or the railway bridge linking navi mumbai and trombay or proposal for so many sea links in mumbai.. CRZ doesn't care all those..

i really dont know what to comments.. these are the ways Government create laws so that officals and politicians make money..

Kannan Sir,

how about Bandra Worli sea link or the railway bridge linking navi mumbai and trombay or proposal for so many sea links in mumbai.. CRZ doesn't care all those..

i really dont know what to comments.. these are the ways Government create laws so that officals and politicians make money..

Even if the construction process does constitute some sort of raping of the nature, I believe we can conciliate in someways. What happens beyond, by gross behaviours such as encroachment, sewage etc is main concern, in my humble opinion. There are many examples of waterways works all over the world.. that are not dubbed bad to the nature. And, if we constrict our roadways too much by not decongesting the traffic .. thats also 'raping of the nature'. There is a definite trade-off here.

I have been working for various projects which need CRZ clearance. With that knowledge, I am commenting.

Any project which lies within CRZ (various zones - 1 to 5) needs Enviro clearance. For Chennai, it is generally Zone 1 - 500 metres from the sea HTL and Zone 2 - 100 metres from HTL of Inland waterway. We have Cooum, B.Canal and Adyar as major waterways and smaller ones like Mamabalam canal, Virugambakkam canal etc.

Our Govt Depts find it easy to encroach upon the banks of the waterways for projects as it is an easy way out. We have raped all our waterways and the water retaining lakes, ponds etc in the name of development - unorganised and hapazard.

MoEF is fully justified in denying the permission if the case was not presented with convincing arguments.

We need saner elements to maintain balance.
Mr.Kannan are there no CRZ clearance rules for the western coast of India?Can u say that the Kamarajar salai in chennai along the marina beach violates CRZ rules ?There is no ministry which is as whimsical as the MOEF.There are many iirigation projects which wholesomely degrades forests and swallows vast areas of lands which are cultivable in A.P where the same ministry has given clearance eventhough they violate all environment and forest protection laws.Is these people in the ministry saner?

The economic slowdown will not hamper the cargo growth of the Chennai port during the current fiscal.

The port will handle a record 62 million tonnes cargo for the year ending March 31, 2010, a 10 per cent growth, according to Capt Subash Kumar, Chairman, Chennai Port Trust.

Speaking at the two-day Southern Region Shipping Conclave organised by the Southern India Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Capt Kumar said handling of iron ore and coal declined in the last two quarters, but is showing improvement.

Handling of container and ‘other cargo' has shown significant improvement.

In fact, container handling during the fiscal is likely to cross 1.20 million TEUs (twenty foot equivalent units), he said.

On the Mega Container Terminal to be developed by the Port Trust at a cost of Rs 3,686 crore, Capt Kumar said, “The project, recently cleared by the Public-Private Partnership Advisory Committee, will have a quay length of 2 km, making it one of the biggest terminals in India.
Eleven companies have shown interest in the project.

A hearing was held recently with the Tariff Authority for Major Ports to discuss the tariff.

Once the upfront tariff is finalised, the Port Trust will seek price bids from the short-listed companies in March, he said.

Road connectivity

The ChPT Chairman said the elevated road corridor project connecting Chennai port with Muduravoyal would be crucial for the Mega Container Terminal project for the movement of containers in and out of the port.

“If the elevated project does not come up, there is no point discussing about the mega terminal,” he said.
Rail connectivity

Capt Kumar said as part of the port development, internal railway lines are being augmented for the evacuation of containers from the port. Third and fourth railway lines are being developed by the Southern Railway to improve connectivity to the port and the rail share of container movement to 30 per cent from the current 7 per cent. The rest will be moved by road, he said. The biggest advantage of the Jawaharlal Nehru Port is an efficient railway system that gives fixed day train schedule to users. Similarly, Chennai will have a railway line in future, he said.

http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/2010/01/23/stories/2010012351621100.htm


What is this non-sense does this means this project is also shunned.

To hell with MOEF :bash:

Also the UMPP at cheyyur didnt get clearance.

WTF WTF :bash: :bash:

I would like to start an earnest discussion among ourselves and would like to understand the impact of the solutions proposed by the bureaucracy. I am skeptical about the whole idea of this elevated port connectivity project along the Coovum bank. Although I am excited as most people are about Chennai infrastructure growing to international standards, we need to look into this issue with a local perspective. I am least bothered about 35 pile foundation pits falling within the CRZ but I am more concerned about the 471 foundation pits that is going to destroy the Coovum permanently.

The solution that is being proposed here is a 4 laned express way meandering along the Coovum. I am not an architect/engineer but I am going to guess some wild numbers here. For a four lane express way traffic to be supported, the width of the carriage way should be atleast 20 m (assuming 5 m/lane) and additional 5m for utility, median etc. So we are talking about 25m elevated structure and a pile with of 5m-10m to support the elevated structure. We need to bring in some 3D modeling guys to present us as to how this would look. As we already have elevated MRTS long B canal we can imaging how it would look. One shore of the river would be permanently lost. As the elated structure is going to shade the ground below, there could be no landscaping or vegetation possible. Already Coovum has lost 50% shores in the last century and if it looses an additional 25% we might end up loosing the river. How many of you in this forum think that the Coovum would be in a better shape when this project is completed?

Knowing well how public construction projects are handled in Chennai, the whole river will become a permanent stagnant pool during the construction. The construction debris would be left along the river shore atleast for 5 years after the construction is completed. Coovum beautification project would be forgotten once again as planners would want to take it up after the completion of the super structure. Atleast 25% of the current encroachments that are removed will once again mushroom under the superstructure and some might even be legal(like under the Kodambakkam bridge) and finally the govt and public would use this land as a parking space in a decade as we increase our fleet of cars.

My other concern is with the unproven concept of elevated expressway along the riverbed. I know that Chennai is the first to experiment this out in India and I wonder if any other country dared to rape their own rivers. Our own self destruction of the Buckingham canal should be an eye opener. What have we learnt from the development of MRTS along Buckingham canal? I found that Exnora had petitioned against the MRTS (http://www.hindu.com/2006/10/13/stories/2006101317580300.htm) but the railways won the case saying that they have restored the river to its original course. Look at the state of the B Canal at Central Station, they have silently covered it and have established an open car parking garage. Triplicane, Mylapore, Kotturpuram and Thiruvanmayur stations are right into the river. All the 3 MRTS stations along the IT highway have heavily encroached on both the shores of the canal, making it look like an artificial pool. Per the graph, the width of canal had shrunk to 25% its original size. I wouldn’t be surprised if the whole Central B Cannal is covered with concrete one day and made as a connecting road. They have already proposed a elevated corridor from Swami Sivananda Salai to Radhakrishnan Salai as a part of HSCC.

I guess for all the problems there are a multitude of solutions. Some solutions are short sighted easy way out solutions that manifest themselves as unsolvable problems in the due course. Most of the damage(Pollution) to Coovum has been done is the last century. But everyone knows that it could be set right in a decade or couple of decades with sustained efforts. If a concrete structure, is constructed it would only lead to more pollution and I cannot imagine the process of dismantling this 19KM expressway. Chennai is well known for its drought and we cannot afford risk the two remaining rivers (Adayar and Coovum)

With a fraction of the cost spend on the elevated highway the port could upgrade the existing road facilities. If we could plan on widening NH5 all the way to the port that would gives some improvement. Also the implementation of the Ennore port connectivity project should be expedited, it has to be immediately upgraged to a 6/8 lane highyway. We already have in place IRR, Chennai ByePass and plans for ORR radially connecting all the major highways NH5, NH205, NH4 and NH45. If we could elevated highway along old jail road, NH5 upto IRR junction all heavy vehicles should be able to get out easily.

http://img689.imageshack.us/img689/5736/coovumwidth.gif (http://img689.imageshack.us/i/coovumwidth.gif/)
http://img695.imageshack.us/img695/9109/bcannalwidth.gif (http://img695.imageshack.us/i/bcannalwidth.gif/)
(Note the stats are from HSCC feasibility document.)

^^Good analysis and write up, ramak.

Do we have any precedence anywhere in the world of a elevated highway by the banks of a water course?

I know if the alignment of the highway has to be changed, it would take a decade to come out with a feasibility study. I think we can just forget about this project now.

The only other viable option is to develop another port.

see there is no point to discuss this when there are many projects are made using sea.. Eurotunnel.. bandra worli sea link wherehigh tides in mumbai are very high in south west monsoon.. what was CRZ doing! they dont have any say ont this.. and thank god King of Ayodhya with gorillas did not cross bandra and worli..

Coovum restoration is not that easy due to stagnant water in river bed and water flow is also not easy untill dregging is done to maintain slope in river bed. Right now there is negative slope so the river water cant flow :bash:

they need to construct a lot of sewage treatment plants for regular flow of water to the river.. but the plan is treated sewage water will be taken as drinking water.. there is no source of water for regular intake into river..:cheers:

we need to see benefit arising out of this project probably a lot of fuel savings which would result in better environment.. planting trees around the elevated highway.. removing enchrochers along river bank who pollute the river every day.. see even more ships means no need to travel use ports in Mumbai (see many exporters and importers in tamil nadu use mumbai ports due to lack of ships in chennai) look into fuel savings.. huge employment oppertunity.. there is not point in halting projects like this..

see there is no point to discuss this when there are many projects are made using sea.. Eurotunnel.. bandra worli sea link wherehigh tides in mumbai are very high in south west monsoon.. what was CRZ doing! they dont have any say ont this.. and thank god King of Ayodhya with gorillas did not cross bandra and worli..

Coovum restoration is not that easy due to stagnant water in river bed and water flow is also not easy untill dregging is done to maintain slope in river bed. Right now there is negative slope so the river water cant flow :bash:

they need to construct a lot of sewage treatment plants for regular flow of water to the river.. but the plan is treated sewage water will be taken as drinking water.. there is no source of water for regular intake into river..:cheers:

we need to see benefit arising out of this project probably a lot of fuel savings which would result in better environment.. planting trees around the elevated highway.. removing enchrochers along river bank who pollute the river every day.. see even more ships means no need to travel use ports in Mumbai (see many exporters and importers in tamil nadu use mumbai ports due to lack of ships in chennai) look into fuel savings.. huge employment oppertunity.. there is not point in halting projects like this..

Well said..there is no mention of Cooum in Ramayanam or Mahabharatam else KK would have to face BJP, SivSena, religious organisations along with CRZ. It is always a big issue with Big projects in TN. Sethu canal, Tata Titanium dioxide project, Cooum cleaning and now elevated expressway...

http://www.deccanchronicle.com/chennai/centre%E2%80%99s-nod-awaited-968

Chennai, Jan. 22: A visibly upset Chennai Port Trust chairman Capt Subash Kumar on Friday criticised the ministry of environment for delaying the environmental clearance for the proposed 19 km-long elevated highway along the banks of Cooum that caters to the demands of modern Chennai port.
“Cooum river continues to remain so filthy even mosquitoes will think twice before laying their eggs there. Though we have off-ered beautification and cl-eaning the part of Cooum river where the proposed construction takes place, the ministry of environment is yet to give clearance,” said Capt Subhash Kumar, while delivering a speech at Southern Region Shipping Conclave, organised by Southern India Chamber of Commerce and Industry.
According to Capt Subhash, the proposed elevated highway project will have to construct only two pillars along the banks of Co-oum and it will not affect the genuine flow of the river. “Though the subject committee chairman has personally agreed with the project, we are waiting for the approval,” he added.
The Chennai port, which was recently nominated as a transshipment hub by In-dia government, had 21 per cent growth in the container handling in the past five years. A multi-level car pa-rking facility is also being coming up in the port.

IF only the environment ministry is so concerned , they should ban use of plastics the very first thing, it is causing the flow of water every where.

thank god King of Ayodhya with gorillas did not cross bandra and worli..

Thats a good piece of joke ...i liked it ...But my dear "belief is bit diff from real fact" .
Mythology vs History/Science.

But wht to do my friend i dont understand why people still get confued with once belief n the real fact .

Maybe in another 10-20 yrs things can change.

^^ I'm sorry to point out, but your remarks are way off topic.

I was under the impression that no work will be commenced on the expressway till MOEF clears the project. But the soil testing on the maduravoyil road is almost completed. Further SOMA the contractors for the project has erected huge EOT cranes , cement mixer plant and crawler cranes near chennai byepass. Similar to the plant built by HCC for phase II of byepass for casting concetre slabs . I think they are planning for a delhi metro type of construction were the pillar will be built first and the concerte slabs will be placed on top and the road will be laid over these slabs. HCC has done around 5 km of such road for the byepass.

^^ that doesn't come under the CRZ regulation.. thats over already existing road! :)

Kewl

Does that mean the portion of elevated highway that runs over PHR has started.

^^ Can't say without confirming it. But I guess it might have.

^^ Can't say without confirming it. But I guess it might have.

Any photos or any visual updates ? waiting to c..

guys.. i have the pics of soil test done along PH road.. i have problem uploading to imageshock site... if anyone pass on emailid.. i can email them and they can upload in the SSC...

^^ mail to my id dude .. ill post it here

Will All The Expressways Have 6 Lanes?

Between Koyambedu & Maduravayal, in 5 places they are doing soil testing. They have put the barricades in the middle of the road. Is that for the elevated corridor?

Between Koyambedu & Maduravayal, in 5 places they are doing soil testing. They have put the barricades in the middle of the road. Is that for the elevated corridor?

Is not from Maduravoyl to Koyamedu the expressway is on ground level? So why soil testing!?

Is not from Maduravoyl to Koyamedu the expressway is on ground level? So why soil testing!?

No.till Maduravoyal,it is elevated ...

Is not from Maduravoyl to Koyamedu the expressway is on ground level? So why soil testing!?

It is at ground for about 1.5 km coz of koymabedu parclo interchange and Metro rail crossing. It again goes elevated after that and till maduravoyal clover leaf interchange.

^^ And I guess it also needs to be at grade for the toll plaza..

^^ The toll plazas in Madhuravoyal and Koyambedu will be at grade. But there's another one in the middle which is elevated toll plaza.

sorry for the delay guys... As i told sometime back that i will post someof the soil test on koyembedu - maduravoyil road... excuse me for some poor pics..

Soil Test ..
http://img708.imageshack.us/img708/3996/soil4.jpg

http://img517.imageshack.us/img517/4015/soil2.jpg
http://img63.imageshack.us/img63/5583/soil1.jpg
http://img294.imageshack.us/img294/640/soil.jpg

Ya its equal rights to cattles to...
http://img692.imageshack.us/img692/3724/soil3.jpg

Koyembedu grade seperator updates ....

Soil testing ?? I can only see cud tasting :) ...kidding :) ..appreciate the picture...I guess unless the pillars start going up the pictures will continue to underwhelm.

Koyembadu grade seperator updates--

http://img707.imageshack.us/img707/9632/koyem7.jpg
http://img695.imageshack.us/img695/4757/koyem6.jpg
http://img10.imageshack.us/img10/5345/koyem5.jpg
http://img693.imageshack.us/img693/5113/koyem4.jpg
http://img716.imageshack.us/img716/5620/koyem3.jpg
http://img13.imageshack.us/img13/5884/koyem2.jpg
http://img638.imageshack.us/img638/2636/koyem1.jpg

---

can anyone tell us what's traffic police doing on top of the pillar ?
is he regulating the traffic from top? anyway hats off to him for his interest over the construction...

http://img684.imageshack.us/img684/5686/img3072g.jpg
http://img693.imageshack.us/img693/6276/img3071z.jpg

^^ thanks for the pictures and update.

:bash: Still can see some happy holy cows in busy roads of chennai!!!!. I thought Mr. Stalin removed all the cows from city limits?

Can Some one please inform whether the four lane work between Koyambedu and Maduravoyal ( 4 Kms ) of NH-4 has been fully completed and opened to traffic. The stretch beyond Maduravoyal has long since been completed. If so some photos please.

Thanks for the updates, cityrider.. :)

Looks like a long way still to go for the Koyambedu interchange - what's the latest completion date announced?

Can Some one please inform whether the four lane work between Koyambedu and Maduravoyal ( 4 Kms ) of NH-4 has been fully completed and opened to traffic. The stretch beyond Maduravoyal has long since been completed. If so some photos please.

Yes.. its actually 7 lane(3 lane towards maduravoyil and 3 lane on otherside) you would have suprize on extra 1 lane(you can see solid yellow lane on post #219 ).. yes this is dedicated for evelated road.. i hope they will build pillar on this lane... and road is not well maintained.. one can see people and cow crossing all over the streach...:bash:

^^ Hey, thanks for the updates dude :)

Thanks for the updates, cityrider.. :)

Looks like a long way still to go for the Koyambedu interchange - what's the latest completion date announced?

Per paper says it will be complete by May... to be more realistic it will be ready by july or aug.. tho all the pillars erected into earth... major connecting of the shelve needs to be build... Hope major arm connecting PH to maduravoyil will be complete by may... :cheers:

^^ Hey, thanks for the updates dude :)

^^You Welcome dude..

[QUOTE=cityrider82;53187751Hope major arm connecting PH to maduravoyil will be complete by may... :cheers:[/QUOTE]

Yeah that sounds possible.. Fingers crossed.. :)

Yes.. its actually 7 lane(3 lane towards maduravoyil and 3 lane on otherside) you would have suprize on extra 1 lane(you can see solid yellow lane on post #219 ).. yes this is dedicated for evelated road.. i hope they will build pillar on this lane... and road is not well maintained.. one can see people and cow crossing all over the streach...:bash:

Thanks cityrider82 for your feed back

This strectch of 4 Kms has taken more than 4 years to get upgraded. The stretch from Koyambedu to Poonamalle was in very bad shape during 2003-06 due to congestion and very heavy traffic round the clock.

Now it appears some what better atleast the congestion has become less.

CHENNAI: More errors came to light as the final feasibility report of the Rs 1,655-crore elevated expressway project (between Chennai Port and Maduravoyal) mistook the number of people who would be affected by the project and allegedly “lied” about public consultations conducted for it.


The feasibility report by Wilbur Smith, says only 1,500 houses in slums would be affected whereas information from the Tamil Nadu Slum Clearance Board (TNSCB) obtained through an RTI petition states that more than 6,000 houses will be affected.

The feasibility report states that a meeting was conducted with project affected people. The report goes on to say that Wilbur Smith’s officials met Ramalingam, a planning officer at the TNSCB and gave details about the consultation.

However, a reply to an RTI petition filed by a resident Joshua Jayaseelan, clearly states, “No meetings and public consultancy were conducted.” The public consultation is mandatory for the project.

G Devasahayam, trustee of NGO Sustain said Wilbur Smith has “lied” about the public consultation.

While the report prohibits the start of any work until the affected people receive compensation, sources say the concessionaire of the project is building a structure near Spurtank Road for construction purposes


Source: Indian Express (http://www.expressbuzz.com/edition/story.aspx?Title=Wilbur+Smith%E2%80%99s+expressway+feasibility+report+run&artid=BjW5SPi5LJg=&SectionID=lifojHIWDUU=&MainSectionID=wIcBMLGbUJI=&SectionName=rSY%7C6QYp3kQ=&SEO=)

CHENNAI: More errors came to light as the final feasibility report of the Rs 1,655-crore elevated expressway project (between Chennai Port and Maduravoyal) mistook the number of people who would be affected by the project and allegedly “lied” about public consultations conducted for it.


The feasibility report by Wilbur Smith, says only 1,500 houses in slums would be affected whereas information from the Tamil Nadu Slum Clearance Board (TNSCB) obtained through an RTI petition states that more than 6,000 houses will be affected.

The feasibility report states that a meeting was conducted with project affected people. The report goes on to say that Wilbur Smith’s officials met Ramalingam, a planning officer at the TNSCB and gave details about the consultation.

However, a reply to an RTI petition filed by a resident Joshua Jayaseelan, clearly states, “No meetings and public consultancy were conducted.” The public consultation is mandatory for the project.

G Devasahayam, trustee of NGO Sustain said Wilbur Smith has “lied” about the public consultation.

While the report prohibits the start of any work until the affected people receive compensation, sources say the concessionaire of the project is building a structure near Spurtank Road for construction purposes


Source: Indian Express (http://www.expressbuzz.com/edition/story.aspx?Title=Wilbur+Smith%E2%80%99s+expressway+feasibility+report+run&artid=BjW5SPi5LJg=&SectionID=lifojHIWDUU=&MainSectionID=wIcBMLGbUJI=&SectionName=rSY%7C6QYp3kQ=&SEO=)

^^
Second Blow to the project after MOFE?
The article emphasizing the word "lied" is really a serious matter if we consider "Indian Express" a reasonable news paper and author C. Sivakumar is social responsible person.

^^ Yes, they've never done the public consultation as well as EIA.

http://www.deccanchronicle.com/chennai/elevated-expressway-faces-delay-getting-clearance-726

March 20: Delays in getting coastal regulation zone (CRZ) clearance and problems regarding relief and resettlement of affected families are turning out to be major hurdles for the 19-km-long elevated expressway connecting Chennai Port and Maduravoyal via Koyambedu junction. Officials, however, are optimistic that the issues will soon to sorted out.
It’s been 15 months since Prime Minister Manmohan Singh laid the foundation stone for the project but construction is yet to begin.
“CRZ clearance is a must for starting construction work on the first 8 km of the project from Chennai Port,” a source in the National Highways Authority of India said, adding, "After twice being refused clearance for the elevated expressway by the National Coastal Zone Management Authority (NCZMA), the Tamil Nadu State Coastal Zone Management Authority once again asked the NCZMA for clearance in the meeting held on February 24 this year. We are hopeful of getting clearance very soon."
Another major hurdle for the NHAI is the relief and rehabilitation of the 12,000 affected families who were living along the banks of the Cooum. “The state government and the Chennai Port Trust will equally share the Rs 258 crore required for the rehabilitation,” said a source.
The expressway will be constructed on a build, operate and transfer (BOT) basis by Delhi-based Soma Enterprises at a cost of Rs 1,655 crore. It will have entry ramps at Sivananda Salai and College Road and exit ramps at Kamarajar Salai and Spur Tank Road.

http://www.deccanchronicle.com/chennai/elevated-expressway-faces-delay-getting-clearance-726

March 20: Delays in getting coastal regulation zone (CRZ) clearance and problems regarding relief and resettlement of affected families are turning out to be major hurdles for the 19-km-long elevated expressway connecting Chennai Port and Maduravoyal via Koyambedu junction. Officials, however, are optimistic that the issues will soon to sorted out.
It’s been 15 months since Prime Minister Manmohan Singh laid the foundation stone for the project but construction is yet to begin.
“CRZ clearance is a must for starting construction work on the first 8 km of the project from Chennai Port,” a source in the National Highways Authority of India said, adding, "After twice being refused clearance for the elevated expressway by the National Coastal Zone Management Authority (NCZMA), the Tamil Nadu State Coastal Zone Management Authority once again asked the NCZMA for clearance in the meeting held on February 24 this year. We are hopeful of getting clearance very soon."
Another major hurdle for the NHAI is the relief and rehabilitation of the 12,000 affected families who were living along the banks of the Cooum. “The state government and the Chennai Port Trust will equally share the Rs 258 crore required for the rehabilitation,” said a source.
The expressway will be constructed on a build, operate and transfer (BOT) basis by Delhi-based Soma Enterprises at a cost of Rs 1,655 crore. It will have entry ramps at Sivananda Salai and College Road and exit ramps at Kamarajar Salai and Spur Tank Road.
NCZMA seems to be more strict on coastal regulation rules for the east coast than for in the western coast of the country.Harbours can be only on the sea coast and the roads connecting the harbours have to be constructed touching the coastal zones to for some extent.Simple common sense.:nuts:

http://www.expressbuzz.com/edition/story.aspx?Title=TN:+CBI+probing+expressway+irregularities&artid=wJA0b83Rb0M=&SectionID=lifojHIWDUU=&MainSectionID=lifojHIWDUU=&SEO=CBI,+L&T+Ramboll,+NHAI,+Balasubramaniam,+Cooum+riv&SectionName=rSY%7C6QYp3kQ=

CHENNAI: The Central Bureau of Investigation is investigating irregularities in the Rs 1,655 crore Elevated Expressway project to the concessionaire on the recommendation of the consultant Wilbur Smith.


“All the records related to the above project work were given to the CBI’s anti corruption bureau for perusal,” according to the National Highway Authority of India.

This development comes in the wake of TNIE exposing irregularities in the project and how it was executed bypassing several norms.

Separately, replying to an RTI query from activist Balasubramaniam, who is also a consultant engineer, NHAI said the first report by L&T Ramboll along National Highway-4 for the traffic to Chennai Port was not initiated by NHAI. “As ascertained from Port authorities the report was initiated as per the request of Chennai Port,” the letter stated. On the alignment of the project it said the state government had through GO 199 allowed NHAI to use one side of the Cooum river.

The fact that there are two feasibility reports giving two different figures for the elevated project, a government order (GO 133 HW and Minor Ports) yet to be traced and different versions given by the slum board on how many people would be affected by the project in three different RTIs, just highlight the ignorance of the authorities concerned, says Balasubramaniam who has worked in several international projects.

“In the feasiblity report, Wilbur Smith says that the soil sampling has been done at two places and they are showing that they have done bore testing at 37 places. We have requested the NHAI to produce the results of the bore test and there has been no reply from them for 60 days,” says Balasubramaniam. “I think the CBI investigation would reveal all the lacunae.”

http://www.expressbuzz.com/edition/story.aspx?Title=TN:+CBI+probing+expressway+irregularities&artid=wJA0b83Rb0M=&SectionID=lifojHIWDUU=&MainSectionID=lifojHIWDUU=&SEO=CBI,+L&T+Ramboll,+NHAI,+Balasubramaniam,+Cooum+riv&SectionName=rSY%7C6QYp3kQ=

CHENNAI: The Central Bureau of Investigation is investigating irregularities in the Rs 1,655 crore Elevated Expressway project to the concessionaire on the recommendation of the consultant Wilbur Smith.


“All the records related to the above project work were given to the CBI’s anti corruption bureau for perusal,” according to the National Highway Authority of India.

This development comes in the wake of TNIE exposing irregularities in the project and how it was executed bypassing several norms.

Separately, replying to an RTI query from activist Balasubramaniam, who is also a consultant engineer, NHAI said the first report by L&T Ramboll along National Highway-4 for the traffic to Chennai Port was not initiated by NHAI. “As ascertained from Port authorities the report was initiated as per the request of Chennai Port,” the letter stated. On the alignment of the project it said the state government had through GO 199 allowed NHAI to use one side of the Cooum river.

The fact that there are two feasibility reports giving two different figures for the elevated project, a government order (GO 133 HW and Minor Ports) yet to be traced and different versions given by the slum board on how many people would be affected by the project in three different RTIs, just highlight the ignorance of the authorities concerned, says Balasubramaniam who has worked in several international projects.

“In the feasiblity report, Wilbur Smith says that the soil sampling has been done at two places and they are showing that they have done bore testing at 37 places. We have requested the NHAI to produce the results of the bore test and there has been no reply from them for 60 days,” says Balasubramaniam. “I think the CBI investigation would reveal all the lacunae.”


Guys dont expect this project to start any soon. in fact seeing the ground realities and problems and the ineffectiveness of the govt to get environmental clearance, i don think the project is going to be a reality.

Insane and a very bad planning that will impact Chennai ports growth.:bash:

I really and deeply wish and Pray my heart out that this project takes off. Lets see. Chennai needs a few more projests like this badly.

http://www.expressbuzz.com/edition/story.aspx?Title=TN:+CBI+probing+expressway+irregularities&artid=wJA0b83Rb0M=&SectionID=lifojHIWDUU=&MainSectionID=wIcBMLGbUJI=&SectionName=rSY|6QYp3kQ=&SEO=

CHENNAI: The Central Bureau of Investigation is investigating irregularities in the Rs 1,655 crore Elevated Expressway project to the concessionaire on the recommendation of the consultant Wilbur Smith.
“All the records related to the above project work were given to the CBI’s anti corruption bureau for perusal,” according to the National Highway Authority of India.
This development comes in the wake of TNIE exposing irregularities in the project and how it was executed bypassing several norms.
Separately, replying to an RTI query from activist Balasubramaniam, who is also a consultant engineer, NHAI said the first report by L&T Ramboll along National Highway-4 for the traffic to Chennai Port was not initiated by NHAI. “As ascertained from Port authorities the report was initiated as per the request of Chennai Port,” the letter stated. On the alignment of the project it said the state government had through GO 199 allowed NHAI to use one side of the Cooum river.
The fact that there are two feasibility reports giving two different figures for the elevated project, a government order (GO 133 HW and Minor Ports) yet to be traced and different versions given by the slum board on how many people would be affected by the project in three different RTIs, just highlight the ignorance of the authorities concerned, says Balasubramaniam who has worked in several international projects.
“In the feasiblity report, Wilbur Smith says that the soil sampling has been done at two places and they are showing that they have done bore testing at 37 places. We have requested the NHAI to produce the results of the bore test and there has been no reply from them for 60 days,” says Balasubramaniam. “I think the CBI investigation would reveal all the lacunae.”

Hi,

If the project starts, what would be the compensation provided for the people who are resettled and having all documents.

Can any one provide assistance on this issue as no one has taken up this issue in this forum ?

Will it be the market or guideline value ? What is the current market value for areas in aminjikarai, chetput and maduravoyal ?

What would be the compensation for buildings ?

Status update

1) Barricades ready in Madhuravoyal

2) Small work shed with SOMA Elevated Expressway NHAI name board constructed on the banks of COOUM opp to Raja Annamalai Mahal behind the Park .

Hope they are waiting for the clearence to commence the project

^^ the clearance is needed only for the first 9 km i guess. rest of the section doesn't need environmental clearance coz its along the existing road median.

and thanks for the updates :)

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/Protest-against-elevated-road-along-coast/articleshow/5730265.cms

CHENNAI: The state government's plan for a 7.5-km long elevated expressway along the coast is running into stiff resistance from beach-goers, environmentalists, fisherfolk and a section of residents of Besant Nagar.

The organisers of Save Beaches Campaign, spearheading the protest, told mediapersons on Friday that they plan to appeal to chief minister M Karunanidhi and Union environment minister Jairam Ramesh to abandon the project.

"On Earth Day, April 22, a demonstration to show our interest in preserving the beach and the lives and livelihoods of fisherfolk and to press for better traffic planning and public transportation as an alternative has been planned," they said.

Based on the highways department's feasibility report, the government plans to take up the six-lane elevated expressway in two phases — the first from Light House to Foreshore Estate via Adyar estuary and Ururkuppam and the second from Besant Nagar Fifth Avenue to Kottivakkam.

The protesters said the structures would disrupt fishing, ruin ecologically-sensitive areas like Theosophical Society and Adyar estuary besides violating the coastal regulation zone notification, 1991. "The project will cut across 14 fishing villages, dislacing hundreds of fisherfolk," said Sharadha Sankar of Save Beaches Campaign.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/chennai/Protest-against-elevated-road-along-coast/articleshow/5730265.cms

CHENNAI: The state government's plan for a 7.5-km long elevated expressway along the coast is running into stiff resistance from beach-goers, environmentalists, fisherfolk and a section of residents of Besant Nagar.

The protesters said the structures would disrupt fishing, ruin ecologically-sensitive areas like Theosophical Society and Adyar estuary besides violating the coastal regulation zone notification, 1991. "The project will cut across 14 fishing villages, dislacing hundreds of fisherfolk," said Sharadha Sankar of Save Beaches Campaign.


^^^^ Excellent, Wonderful. These guys have saved the Mother Nature from The Disaster and are single handedly upholding the ecological balance, as we can see how beautiful, natural and ecologically balanced our beaches are now. I just feel very very disappointed.

I wonder why the development has to be done only in the already denesly populated areas of central chennai. I would suggest that when chennai suburbs can be extended to Guduvancherry in the South. We can have planned development of areas beyond Mullakadai, Manali, Poonnamallee etc(hardly 15 kms from the broadway). The only thing which is hindering is the Lack of Wide roads ( GST and IRR) and Sub urban trains. If you take a bus from Redhills to Broadway . Most of the Roads are their 2 laned or some roads are even into small streets like Vysarpadi market. If the Government makes an Effort to make an 4 laned road to North chennai then the city can be easily extended to Gummudipoondi.

Is it only in Chennai that we have all these environment related problems along the shore? Port connectivity is under trouble, beach expressway is under trouble and many more will follow when everybody protests like this. Look at the World...doesn't any country build flyovers over rivers? Dont they build bridges across seas? There are countries that build roads and tunnels under the sea bed. Do environmentalists think about those? Even Mumbai has a sea link bridge.

Can anybody clearly tell what is the basis behind the fear that fishing will be affected? Does fishing happen only in Chennai? I doubt if the present age environmentalists would have even let the historic Pamban bridge be built if it was to be done today. Everybody seems to predict the future post construction, but can somebody give examples of any city in the World that got affected due to similar constructions?? Please educate me if am wrong in my thinking.

^^^^ Well said