Several residents of Shenoy Nagar came together and staged a protest against Chennai Metro on Saturday for not restoring the Thiru Vi Ka Park, that was taken over years ago for constructing an underground station.
Residents alleged that Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL) had promised to restore the park, without much damage, when they had shut it down for the construction of the Shenoy Nagar Metro station, way back in 2011. The park sprawled across 8.8 acres and CMRL had earlier said they required nearly 50% of the space for construction. The station — part of the Thirumangalam to Chennai Central stretch — was opened to the public two years ago, but there have been no signs of opening the park yet.
S. Yuvaraj, 57, who has been a resident of Shenoy Nagar for five decades, said: “Now CMRL has plans to have a huge underground parking lot and other facilities. No one is interested in them. We were not against Chennai Metro, because they assured us of returning the park on time. All we want is a good space for senior citizens and others to walk during mornings and evenings.” Another resident, Usha Babu, 62, who used to teach yoga at the park, said hundreds of people would come there to do yoga and now they had lost that space.
There is an ongoing case at the Madras High Court in this regard, and the residents want CMRL to restore the park.
Published - August 11, 2019 12:57 am IST
