Tiruppur MP Urges Union Minister to Approve Salem-Chengapalli Six-Lane Expressway

Speedy Summary

• Tiruppur MP K. Subbarayan met Union Minister for Road Transport and highways Nitin Gadkari in New Delhi, submitting a petition too upgrade the 102.5-km stretch of NH 544 Salem-Chengapalli from a four-lane highway to a six-lane expressway.
• The highway connects regions in Tamil nadu, including salem, Erode, Coimbatore, and Namakkal with Kerala cities like Palakkad, thrissur, and Kochi. Currently, only the Chengapalli-Coimbatore portion has been upgraded to six lanes.
• Traffic congestion on the unfinished section is exacerbated by approximately 30,000 vehicles using it daily. The issues raised include increased fuel consumption and carbon emissions due to delays.
• Land acquisition for the expansion has already been completed; however, funds allocation is pending.
• The MP also requested overbridges, flyovers, and service roads within his constituency as necessary infrastructure improvements for easing public hardships.
• He initially raised these demands in October 2024 but reiterated them with urgency during this meeting.

Read More: The Hindu

Indian Opinion Analysis

The petition submitted by MP K. Subbarayan underscores an escalating need for infrastructure upgrades driven by growth in vehicular density along NH 544-a critical route linking Tamil Nadu and Kerala economically and geographically.Relief measures such as expanding the remaining road segments into six lanes align with broader goals of reducing fuel consumption and minimizing environmental impact from traffic congestion.

A potential bottleneck lies not in planning but funding allocation despite land acquisition being complete-a reflection of how execution challenges can delay infrastructural progress even after groundwork is ready. Larger-scale ancillary projects like overbridges also show simultaneous socioeconomic value beyond vehicular transit.

Strategic prioritization of resources at both state and central levels could help accelerate completion timelines while addressing systemic concerns over efficient travel routes between major urban hubs across Southern India.