CHENNAI: The main junctions and traffic congested areas of the city might have gotten a breather through the construction of concrete flyovers and bridges but a village, not quite far away from the heart of the city, has been suffering for close to half-a-century without a permanent bridge to connect it to the city. Now that the village has been brought under the Chennai City Corporation limits, residents hope that their misery will come to an end.For residents of Sadayankuppam, once a village panchayat near Manali, the temporary wooden bridge built across the Buckingham Canal is the easiest way to reach nearby Thiruvottriyur. Thanks to the bridge, the residents need to walk just half-a-kilometre to get to Thiruvottriyur. The only other alternative they have to the bridge, the residents say, is travel 14 kilometres. Of the 14 kilometres, they have to cover at least two kilometres by walk. The walk is to reach a nearby bus stand in Andal Kuppam or Jothi Nagar. The village has more than 500 families comprising labourers and fishermen.Residents claim that every year, the bridge gets washed away in floods and they end up spending from their pockets to rebuild it. Though, of late the government has been helping with the rebuilding process, it has not been not of any help during emergencies. “This wooden bridge has existed right from the time of my birth. The situation is pathetic during the rains. The wooden planks get washed away. We can’t even fish during heavy rains,” says Selvam (40), a fisherman from the village.While women do not dare to step on the bridge after dark, residents say that it gets particularly bad during emergencies, “We can’t bring an ambulance, or take a pregnant woman by vehicle. We can only walk. We can’t even use a bicycle. Now that we are within the Corporation’s limits, we just hope we’ll get a solution to this problem,” says Ramesh (35), who was carrying his ailing son to a hospital in Thiruvottriyur by walk.When it rains, water from the Puzhal Lake floods the canal. In fact, residents claim that there have been many incidents of people falling in to the water every year.“I’m not brave enough to take this bridge after 6 pm. Many women like me do not come this side at all. We still remember an old woman, who, while trying to use this bridge during the rains, fell and drowned. A 12-year-old boy too fell in the water but was luckily saved. Even if our houses go up in flames, by the time the firemen reach our place, only ashes will remain,” says 38-year-old Lakshmi. Though they get a free ride in the only boat one of the villagers have, labourers from North India working in the nearby factories pay `5 for a ride across the canal. “I work in the nearby factory along with my brother. We have no choice but to pay for the boat ride,” says Lal Bihari, a labourer from Nepal.Despite many officials having visited the place for many years and having promised solutions - the residents claim they are yet to see any action. “The previous government allotted funds after a minister visited the bridge and even officials from the Highways Department came and measured the area. The residents were promised that it would be ready in a year but nothing has happened so far. We hope to see a concrete bridge soon,” says Jayaraman, former chairman of the erstwhile Thiruvottriyur municipality.
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