AIADMK General Secretary Edappadi Ok Palaniswami campaigning for MK Ashok in Velachery in Chennai
| Photo Credit:
Bijoy Ghosh
Velachery, a key constituency in Chennai, will see an attention-grabbing contest as second-generation politician and incumbent JMH Aassan Maulaana from the Congress, is predicted to face a tricky problem from AIADMK’s ground-level chief, MK Ashok. One amongst Chennai’s newly shaped constituencies, carved out after a State-wide delimitation in 2008, Velachery has advanced from a quiet residential neighbourhood to a bustling hub in South Chennai, linking town’s ever increasing IT hall with its older central enterprise districts.
Its citizens features a sizeable inhabitants of IT and different white-collar salaried professionals, alongside older residents and a few small enterprise homeowners. The MLA seat right here has been a revolving door with AIADMK, DMK and the Congress having received the constituency after its formation.
In 2021, Maulaana had pipped Ashok by a slender margin of 4,352 votes. Ashok himself is not any stranger to Velachery, having received the 2011 election from the constituency. The Naam Tamilar Katchi (NTK) and Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) have additionally fielded their representatives, although the competition is extensively anticipated to be two-cornered.
Like many different areas in southern Chennai, flooding is a key issue in Velachery. In reality, a recurring sight throughout monsoon months is the world’s large double decker bridge lined with parked automobiles, as residents transfer their autos to greater floor.
“The flooding issue has continued even in years when the rainfall has not been that heavy. I think the people here have just accepted it now,” a neighborhood resident advised businessline. He says although the upkeep work is carried out repeatedly, it’s principally restricted to primary roads with streets and smaller roads being ignored. “The big problem is the roads. When the area is already prone to floods, if the roads are constantly dug open and not properly maintained, obviously it will make things worse,” he stated.
Another resident pointed to the huge rubbish processing station on the Velachery-Tambaram primary street, noting that spillovers into close by localities have induced discomfort. Meanwhile, infrastructure upgrades within the space over the previous few years have obtained principally optimistic suggestions, particularly the development of latest street bridges in addition to pedestrian skywalks. A noteworthy growth has been the operationalisation of the elevated rail hall (Mass Rapid Transit System), which had been delayed for practically 20 years.
Speaking to businessline, incumbent Aassan Maulaana stated that his authorities has taken proactive steps to handle the flooding points, together with work on the Velachery lake. “We have worked on preparatory measures before rain and have built enough storm drains and sewages to be ready for it,” he stated. He added that over the subsequent time period, he’ll proceed to concentrate on infrastructure growth and full most of the pending bridge tasks within the space.
‘taken for a ride’
Meanwhile, addressing the general public in one in all his marketing campaign occasions, MK Ashok stated that the one achievement of the DMK and Congress legislators after him was efficiently dishonest the folks of Velachery. “The constituency has regressed under their leadership. There has been no development,” he stated. He added that the flooding state of affairs has in reality worsened lately and there has not been sufficient work on this space.
As for his plans as soon as elected, Ashok stated that many residents haven’t obtained the patta, a authorized land possession doc, and added that he’ll expedite the method. He additionally promised to exchange poorly functioning storm drains within the space and construct a brand new flyover in Thiruvanmiyur junction throughout the constituency.
Published on April 14, 2026