Coimbatore: City corporation commissioner Kumaravel Pandian met around 60 to 70 residents of Race Course on Saturday morning to clarify their doubts on the model road project being carried out in their area and take them into confidence about the project’s objectives.
He assured them that the green cover, which they feared was being reduced, would only be increased upon completion of the project. He said only shrubs and bushes were removed from the area.
“We can’t cut down not even a single tree without the revenue divisional officer’s permission. However, if you have any pictures or videos of trees being felled, please do share them with us. If some other department had chopped a tree or two for some other purposes, we will plant at least four to five trees to compensate for the same,” he told the residents.
Coimbatore: Following TOI reports on growing opposition to the smart city works being undertaken at Race Course without informing the public and how the same has affected the greenery of the locality, the city corporation has begun dismantling the steel structures erected near Thomas Park.
Corporation commissioner Kumaravel Pandian said they decided to remove the sports stadium as local residents were opposed to the move.
Residents, who have been opposing certain components of the project, are planning a protest by walking the Race Course circle on Wednesday morning.
The residents have been protesting remodelling of Race Course for more than a week. They were mainly opposed to removing the historic Thomas Park, which was set up in the 1900s, and replacing it with a sports stadium, and felling more than 70 trees for the project.
Coimbatore: The active Covid-19 cases in the district rose to 4,842 on Tuesday, when it logged 686 fresh cases. The day also saw 559 patients getting discharged from various treatment centres. The district, however, didn’t record any Covid death.
While the district has seen 68,835 positive cases so far, 63,285 have been recovered till date. The recovery rate now stands at 91.9%.
While the number of fresh cases has dropped by around 5.6%, compared to Monday, officials said that wasn’t an indication of a downward dive in the curve. “The number of positive cases depends on the number of samples collected. Since it was low on Sunday, the cases are slightly fewer on Tuesday,” said an official.
Coimbatore: Commercial establishments that repeatedly fail to follow Covid-19 norms will be shut for a week, corporation commissioner Kumaravel Pandian said on Thursday.
“All commercial establishments, including grocery shops, should check body temperature of employees and customers. Oxygen saturation level should be recorded using pulse oximeter. They should ensure that staff and customers wear masks properly and maintain social distancing. Establishments that fail to do so will face heavy fine and will be shutdown. Teams to inspect establishments in the city are already in place. Flying squads will also be formed for this purpose,” Pandian said.
As many as 220 people within corporation limits are testing positive daily. Eighteen wards have been identified as hotspots.
Coimbatore: A section of Race Course residents are disappointed with the city corporation for demolishing Thomas Park to facilitate a badminton or volleyball court in the locality. Despite its small size, the park has been a landmark since the 1890s. While destroying the greenery is one grouse, residents are also upset over the lack of information regarding the amenities coming up in their area.
The residents said the civic body had begun the work to raze down the park more than a fortnight ago. “We initially thought they were planning to renovate the park. It never crossed our mind that the city corporation would remove the green cover completely, said Shantha Sundar, a resident.