Paintings, as part of the campaign against drugs, were done on the pillars of Ranipet’s longest bridge.
| Photo Credit: Special Arrangement
As part of a campaign against drugs, phrases like ‘Say No To Drugs’ and ‘Stop Drugs’ are being painted on the recently opened rail overbridge (ROB) in Navalpur village by Public Works Department.
PWD officials said that the drive, which was initiated by District Collector Priya Ravichandran, was part of a ‘Drug-Free Tamil Nadu’ campaign that was launched by Chief Minister C. Joseph Vijay in Chennai on Tuesday. “Among four to five ROBs in the district, the bridge is the longest facility located in congested Ranipet town. As many schools and other public facilities are located on both sides of the bridge, the idea to use its pillars for the campaign was mooted,” a PWD official told The Hindu.
Jointly built by the National Highways (NH) wing of the State Highways Department and the Southern Railway, the ₹26.65-crore bridge was opened in September 2025. It brought relief to residents as prior to its construction, they had to take a de-tour of eight km to reach Ranipet town from surrounding villages.
Highways officials said that the two-lane bridge is 921-metre-long and 12-metre-wide with at least 15 pillars. Each pillar, on an average, has a height of 10 ft. The awareness campaign against drugs in the pillars is part of the beautification of open space below the bridge and a few parks in the town. Beautification work, that costs around ₹4.5 crore, has been supported by Tata Group under CSR initiative.
“Such innovative awareness campaigns should be done in other public places where crowds gather in large numbers. The idea of converting pillars for such awareness helps prevent its misuse for wall posters,” said R. Sugan, a motorist.
As part of beautification, identified open space below the bridge will be converted into a small children’s play area, seating arrangements, and a walking track. The entire space will be fenced, and visitors will be allowed at specific timings. The entire painting work of the pillars will be done in the coming weeks. Once completed, the space below the bridge will be maintained by the Ranipet municipality.
Published – August 12, 2026 05:30 am IST
