Corporation Commissioner assumes office

A permanent solution for rainwater stagnation woes in the coastal town would be arrived at shortly, Corporation Commissioner Sharanya Ari has said.

After assuming office here on Monday, Ms. Sharanya, a 2016 batch IAS officer from Thanjavur, said that she was informed by the Corporation officials that rainwater stagnation was the major issue the town was facing after a downpour. Hence, due and early action would be taken to put in place a permanent solution for this nagging civic issue.

Ms. Sharanya, who was previously serving as Sub-Collector, Padmanabhapuram, said she felt proud of being posted as Commissioner of Thoothukudi, an ancient town. Her husband Vishwesh Balasubramaniam Shastri is the ASP of Colachel.

Though the Corporation officials are fully aware that rampant encroachments along almost all the streets of Thoothukudi, unauthorised constructions and poor maintenance of drainage channels across the town were the prime reasons behind the monsoon woes, no sustained efforts had been made to put an end to this menace. Consequently, the port town virtually ‘floats’ during every monsoon, sources in the Corporation said.

“When outgoing Commissioner V.P. Jayaseelan started removing encroachments on a particular day of every week, he was forced to give up the exercise. He served notices on a leading textile showroom, a jewellery showroom and the hospital of a ruling party heavyweight for unauthorised constructions made on their premises in violation of permission given by the urban civic body. Even before a reply from these establishments is received, he has been transferred,” said a senior official of Thoothukudi Corporation, adding that encroachment eviction in a sustained manner across the town after giving stern warning to the encroachers alone would yield desirable results.

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