After 12 years, forest road gets re-laid in Gundri Hills

Gundri gets newly paved road after 12 years for ₹80 lakh

A 4.25 km stretch of the forest road that connects Gundri with Kadambur hills was re-laid after 12 years at a total cost of ₹80 lakh.

Over 5,500 people reside in 15 hamlets in Gundri panchayat that can be reached after passing through the 17 km road, including forest road from Kadambur Of the 10.25 km stretch from Anjanai Pirivu to Gundri. The rest 8.75 km road passes through the Guthiyalathur Reserve Forest in Sathyamangalam Tiger Reserve (STR) while the 1.50 km stretch comes under revenue village. The forest road was last re-laid in 2010, after which it suffered extensive damage due to incessant rains.

People were demanding for tar-topping the road, as commuting in two-wheelers and other vehicles to reach schools and hospitals in Kadambur and to their workplace were difficult every day. Pregnant women face hardship in commuting in two-wheelers as the gravels protrude and pits formed at many places on the road surface. Even four-wheelers face difficulty in climbing up the hill at bends as the road has become non-motorable in the last five years.

The Forest Engineering Division, Tiruchi, under whose jurisdiction the road comes, began to re-lay the 4.25 km stretch of forest road and completed the work this week. Patch works were also carried out on the road at few places as officials said that a proposal had already been submitted for re-laying the balance 4.50 km stretch and approval is awaited. Also, a proposal had been submitted for laying roads between Gundri and Makkampalayam (4 k.m.), Makkampalayam Road and from Vilankombai to Kembanur (6.2 km).