Padianallur residents demand parks and playgrounds on poramboke lands

Padianallur residents urge the government to develop parks and playgrounds on poromboke lands amid rapid urbanization.

Residents of Padianallur, one of the biggest panchayats on the outskirts of Chennai faced with rapid urbanisation, have demanded that the State government identify open spaces for the development of civic infrastructure, including parks and playgrounds, on government lands in the locality. 

A. Damodaran, secretary of B.K. Syngal Nagar Residents Association, said residents want parks and playgrounds in the fast-developing area, which is located close to the Red Hills reservoir. “We have land meant for the development of parks at two locations,” he said.

He added that locals have also demanded road development in Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority (CMDA)-approved layouts in the vicinity. The residents have, in fact, adopted distinctive regulations, including the mandatory construction of parking lots around houses, to prevent illegal parking on roads in the future.

Pointing to large parcels of Meikal Poramboke lands in the area, residents said the State government should earmark such lands for the development of playgrounds, before encroachments could shrink them.

With more than 48,000 people residing in the 4.52-sq. km locality, Padianallur is expected to continue to grow and develop into a denser residential area in the next few years, despite certain curbs.

Urban development was restricted in the Second Master Plan in the Red Hills catchment area, where agriculture activity remained predominant, to promote water security for the city. Revenue Department officials said agricultural activity has reduced to around 10 hectares of the 452 hectares in the area today.