‘Spruce up the area outside Youth Hostel in Adyar’

A section of Indira Nagar Second Avenue Service Lane is used as an auto workshop. | Photo Credit: T S ATUL SWAMINATHAN Along Indira Nagar Second Avenue, there are three bus shelters. The area along the stop for buses towards Thiruvanamalai, below a banyan tree, is used for cooking and the garbage and the leftovers being dumped on account of this attract stray dogs and cattle. The area behind Metropolitan Transport Corporation bus shelters and along the service lane is misused. Some of those waiting to board buses towards Thiruvanamalai and Trichy urinate behind the bus shelters and between the abandoned vehicles parked along the service lane. On rare occasions, there is also open defecation. All of this creates an unhealthy atmosphere.On days leading up to ‘Pradosham’, ‘Shivarathri’ and ‘Pournami’, people going to Thiruvanamalai to do ‘Girivalam’ park their vehicles on the lane and return after two days. And residents find it difficult to reverse and take their vehicles outside. As a row of buses are parked on Avenue Road, honking by drivers adds to the noise pollution. The halt should be shifted to the spacious premises of the Gandhi Nagar bus terminus at Adyar on Sardar Patel Road as the terminus has a washroom facility. Behind the shelters, trash and vehicles are dumped and parked, including abandoned vehicles with dust on them. Though the shelters are well-lit, the overgrown tree branches and the area around the vehicles make it a perfect spot for youngsters to engage in antisocial activities.Mechanics have observed tilting vehicles, causing oil and grease to spill onto the road surface along the stormwater drain network pits. This practice has resulted in hazardous, slippery conditions, leading to incidents where individuals have slipped and fallen.Additionally, vehicles are being parked on the stormwater drain network. If they are damaged, water can enter residents’ homes on the lane during the monsoon. Further, parking vehicles on the SWD network is a violation as per Greater Chennai Corporation rules. The problem has been going on for months, with elderly senior citizens having to listen to and endure the repair sounds until evening. The mechanics accelerate the vehicles, causing noise and pollution. A facelift to the area outside the Youth Hostel will be good.S. Ganapathi Sankaran is a resident of Indira Nagar Published - September 27, 2026 02:49 pm IST