Coimbatore: Despite the Madras high court dismissing a petition challenging the removal of a temple obstructing a service road near the Periyanaickenpalayam flyover on NH-181, the structure remains in place, delaying the road-widening project near Jothipuram.In a letter dated Oct 9, the national highways wing of the state highways department informed Coimbatore resident Velumani, who had lodged a grievance through the Centralised Public Grievance Redress and Monitoring System (CPGRAMS), that the Mariamman temple had not been removed because of law-and-order concerns. The department said it had coordinated with police and revenue officials several times to clear the temple and was taking further steps to remove it.The response follows the high court’s Oct 6 dismissal of a writ petition challenging the national highways wing’s action to remove a temple encroachment obstructing the service road. The court declined to interfere with the NH wing’s action.The project involves widening the service road on the Mettupalayam-side approach of the Periyanaickenpalayam flyover on the Coimbatore-Mettupalayam-Ooty-Gundlupet Road.According to the department, the land required for the project has been acquired, and a Vinayagar temple along the approved alignment was dismantled to facilitate construction. However, the Mariamman temple near the northern end of the flyover’s descending ramp, at the zero point, continues to obstruct the work.The department maintained that the approved alignment had not been altered and said efforts were under way to remove the encroachment and complete the project at the earliest.
