Polur traders stage protest demanding safety measures on Chittoor-Cuddalore Highway

Traders in Polur town demand safety measures on accident-prone highway to prevent loss of lives daily.

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Traders including petty shop owners, hoteliers and flower vendors, shut down their shops in Polur town near Tiruvannamalai on Tuesday, demanding safety measures on the accident-prone Chittoor-Cuddalore Highway to prevent loss of lives on the route every day.

Traders said the Chittoor-Cuddalore Highway is a lifeline for Polur town and the 90 adjoining farming villages to reach big towns like Tiruvannamalai, Vellore, and Chengam. Tribal villages atop Jawadhu Hills go to these towns using the stretch passing through Polur town to sell their produce. The stretch is connected to the town by Outer Ring Road for a distance of around five km. “Rash driving, especially by tourist vehicles from Andhra Pradesh, has turned the stretch into an accident-prone zone. How long can we tolerate this after seeing local residents die on the stretch,” asked G. Shanmugam, president, Polur All Traders Association that organised the shutdown.

The day-long shutdown, followed by protest was prompted after a 65-year-old retired schoolteacher and his son were killed, when a car hit the two-wheeler on which they were returning home, on the stretch near Polur town on July 22. The occupants of the car were heading to Chittoor after reportedly worshipping at temples in Tiruvannamalai town, around 35 km from Polur.

At present, the Cuddalore-Chittoor Road, maintained by State Highways, runs through key districts like Villupuram, Kallakuruchi, Tiruvannamalai, Ranipet, Vellore, Tirupattur before ending in Chittoor (A.P), covering a distance of 205 km. The entire stretch is a short route for goods vehicles from southern districts to reach northern areas and neighbouring States like Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka.

Traders said that the shutdown was aimed to highlight three demands of residents in Polur town and adjoining farming villages. The demands include a concrete median between Polur intersection and Kunnathur village on the two-lane stretch with reflectors, and warning signages and pedestrian crossing to prevent accidents on the route. They also called for the completion of the on-going rail over bridge work in the town without any further delay.

Traders also want Collector D. Baskara Pandian to order health officials not to insist on getting ‘referral order’ from the Government Taluk Hospital on Athimoor High Road near the town from accident victims before they shift to referral hospital in Tiruvannamalai or Vellore. Insisting for such orders would delay the shifting of accident victims to referral hospitals on time.