An Indian Made Foreign Liquor (IMFL) retail outlet of Tamil Nadu State Marketing Corporation (TASMAC) located opposite Perungalathur railway station is proving to be a nuisance to commuters and local residents. The outlet is located at Srinivasa Raghavan Street, Srinivasa Nagar, New Perungalathur.
It is common to see tipplers sitting at the path near level-crossing no.32 and 33. Often, men in inebriated condition doze off at the path leading to the railway station or near the ticket counter on the station premises, posing a lot of inconvenience to commuters.
In addition, the path...
more... is used by bus commuters to reach Perungalathur bus stop, towards West Tambaram and Guduvanchery.
Commuters complain that tipplers relieve themselves in the open at a vacant space, near the station, much to the embarrassment of commuters. Moreover, they throw away water sachets, liquor bottles and food leftovers at the path, near the station.
A long-time resident of Perungalathur, D.S. Durai Murugan, says, “Apart from smoking and consuming liquor in the open, boozers sing songs and pass nasty comments at the passers-by, especially women commuters. The path is occupied by them till the staff down the shutters of the Tasmac outlet. The Southern Railway should deploy RPF personnel to prevent tipplers from entering the railway station.”
In addition, due to delay in constructing a road overbridge and a pedestrian subway at level crossing 32, the path is uneven and stony and it becomes slushy and slippery during monsoon. The stretch is poorly illuminated for a short distance.
As a result, commuters are forced to cross the railways tracks from Grand Southern Trunk Road to reach Kamarajar Salai, Rajamanickam Road and Thiruvalluvar Street, Perungalathur.
“The drunkards sing songs and pass nasty comments at passers-by, especially women commuters”