Chennai: Commuters, residents and industries suffering due to poor civic amenities in Ambattur and Guindy industrial zones will soon get relief, as Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC) is set to take over maintenance of these zones. On Friday, GCC signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with Small Industries Development Corporation (Sidco) to maintain infrastructure facilities in the two industrial estates.Ambattur industrial estate, developed by Sidco across 1,167 acres, and Guindy industrial estate, spread over 404.08 acres, house hundreds of industries and employ lakhs of workers engaged in manufacturing and allied activities.GCC will maintain 128 roads totalling 41.38km, 1,558 streetlights, eight high-mast lights and 84km of stormwater drains in e Ambattur industrial estate. Guindy industrial estate has 82 roads covering 15.28km, 344 street lights, two high-mast lights and 23.5km of stormwater drains.The estates have poor lighting and pothole-ridden roads, while the drains are narrow too. In Guindy, the roads are a key thoroughfare for the public to reach from Anna Salai to Alandur Road via Water Works Road. Many of these interior roads are in bad shape.Adyar zonal chairman R Durairaj said GCC will prepare estimates on all fronts and carry out a strategic development plan for both estates. “People have been raising grievances about drains, garbage collection and bad roads. It is a decades-long demand of people to shift responsibility for maintaining the estate to GCC. GCC and Metrowater alone have the high-tech machinery to clear sewage and garbage and ensure quality. The works will begin shortly,” he said.V Vijayakumaran, executive committee member, AIEMA, said the corporation must ensure encroachments do not sprout up on the estate premises. “Tea stalls and cigarette shops outside or on the premises of industries, and entrance gates, will set a bad precedent. We maintained the estate clean from encroachments and littering, and that has to continue,” he said.Guindy industrial estate president Girish Pandiyan said they welcome the govt’s move to maintain it. “We just told them not to allow petty shops and encroachments. Otherwise, we are okay with their maintenance as the estate pays hefty property tax to GCC,” he said.
