Chaotic traffic, piles of garbage worry residents of Mamallapuram

The tourist town will host the 44th Chess Olympiad in July and August

Residents and hoteliers of Mamallapuram are worried about arrangements for parking of vehicles and conservancy in the town during the 44th Chess Olympiad that is to be held in July and August.

“Hundreds of players, their coaches and the organisers will land in the town. All the hotel rooms have been blocked for the chess Olympiad. Vehicle parking would be a problem during those 20 days,” said Balan, who runs a shop selling stone sculptures.  

For the residents, vehicular traffic is difficult to manage on weekends, where is heavy rush of tourists. “We cannot imagine how it would be when so many vehicles enter our small streets. The visit of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Chinese President Xi Jinping was a short one. But at that time traffic was well managed and there was no garbage or pigs either,” said Sethu, a resident. 

A hotelier said that guests many times park their vehicles inside the hotel and take autorickshaws to go around the town since finding a parking space is difficult. “Parking spaces are not marked in the town and hence those taking their vehicles don’t want to take the risk by parking them somewhere. Parking near the archaeological monuments is not allowed. The shops too are not properly organised,” he said.  

An eyesore

Mamallapuram has a major problem with garbage disposal. It is all just dumped on open spaces. Pigs roam everywhere.