CHENNAI: Given today’s general perception of politicians, it is not often that one hears praise for elected representatives. Apart from the endorsement they gave MC Munusamy in the recent civic polls, residents of the newly created Chennai Corporation Ward 192 in Neelankarai are proactively praising their councillor. At the heart of their positive outlook has been the newly elected councillor’s response to an article published in City Express in September.The article had recounted the unauthorised dumping of garbage by local authorities onto an empty plot of land near Sunrise Avenue, and how people from nearby communities had to almost wade through the garbage to enter the nearby cremation ground. At that point, Neelankarai had not been under the Chennai Corporation and the then panchayat president had said uncertainty over the Corporation expansion was behind the piling up of garbage.“There has been a real difference since the new councillor has taken charge. Garbage collection had been a big problem in this area. Sweepers barely ever turned up for work and we had to arrange for garbage to be collected by someone we had to pay. The area has been stripped clean of garbage now and we are happy,” says SD Sankaralingam, a resident of Sunrise Avenue.The councillor has also come in for praise from local traders and shopkeepers for calling a meeting with them to discuss his plans.“I have been fighting the elections here since 1996. This is the first time I have won. We have orders from the top on what needs to be done. My job is only to implement Amma’s vision here. My dream is to make this ward a model one in Chennai,” says Munusamy, a resident of the area.He added that he had started a drive to plant saplings on roadsides, increase street lighting and also develop the Neelankarai beach into a tourist spot.“For now, we are happy with him. He has done some things that we had been led to believe cannot be done. We will stand by him as long as the work continues,” says L Muthukumaran, a local trader.
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