The Madras High Court on August 25, 2026, allowed Cuddalore City Municipal Corporation to proceed with 110 shops around the 15-acre Manjakuppam ground, also known as Thangaraj Maidanam. The project uses funds sanctioned under the State government’s Kalaignar Nagarpura Mempattu Thittam 2025-2026.

The corporation said the shops would function as a compound wall, with access only from the roadside; they would use 4% of the land, and 50% of construction was complete. Rental revenue would fund better playground infrastructure.

A public interest litigation by Cuddalore resident N. Anandakumar cited concerns about the playground’s character and a 1995 district munsif court decree to preserve it. Chief Justice Sushrut Arvind Dharmadhikari and Justice G. Arul Murugan disposed of the petition, directing the corporation to undertake no further construction on the playground and retain it for public use.

Director of Municipal Administration P Madhusudhan Reddy and Collector Sibi Adithya Senthil Kumar inspected works across Nellikuppam, Panruti and Cuddalore on October 25–26, 2025. Reddy urged officials to expedite projects, prioritising roads and drainage during the monsoon.

• Nellikuppam: ₹945 lakh drinking-water project at Viswanathapuram; pipe-laying at Thirukandeswaram; ₹130 lakh additional classrooms at Thirukandeswaram Higher Secondary School; ₹120 lakh Urban Primary Health Centre; ₹172 lakh commercial complex; ₹215 lakh gas-based crematorium at Cholavalli; town bus stand operationalisation discussed.
• Panruti: ₹219 lakh library and knowledge centre; overhead tank at Lakshmipathi Nagar; ₹470 lakh bus stand upgrade; ₹582 lakh daily market; ₹500 lakh Government Hospital building; sewage-treatment-plant site selection reviewed.
• Cuddalore Corporation: Underground sewerage covers 148.7 km in 12 wards, benefiting over 14,000 households. Anna Market’s 122 shops received ₹5.03 crore and Bhaktavatsalam Market in Mudhunagar ₹5.27 crore under the Kalaignar Urban Development Scheme. Silver Beach works for Blue Flag certification cost ₹4 crore, plus a ₹1.13-crore accessibility pathway. Other projects: ₹28.67-crore Manjakuppam overhead tank under AMRUT 2.0; ₹92.25-lakh Subbarayalu Park; ₹4.63-crore nearby fish museum; ₹36-crore bus stand at Arisiperiankuppam; ₹19.35-lakh road and ₹65-lakh animal birth control centre at Pachaiyankuppam. Corporation projects total about ₹540 crore.