The Mariamman temple near the northern end of the flyover’s descending ramp, at the zero point, continues to obstruct the work.
Coimbatore : Despite the Madras high court dismissing a petition challenging the removal of a temple obstructing a service road near the Periyanaickenpalayam flyover on NH-181, the structure remains in place, delaying the road-widening project near Jothipuram. The response follows the high court’s Oct 6 dismissal of a writ petition challenging the national highways wing’s action to remove a temple encroachment obstructing the service road. Because of law-and-order concerns, in a letter dated Oct 9, the national highways wing of the state highways department informed Coimbatore resident Velumani, who had lodged a grievance through the Centralised Public Grievance Redress and Monitoring System (CPGRAMS), that the Mariamman temple had not been removed.
The department said it had coordinated with police and revenue officials several times to clear the temple and was taking further steps to remove it. The court declined to interfere with the NH wing’s action.