The Hindu : Tamil Nadu / Chennai News : Relief distribution on in phased manner

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Friday, Dec 19, 2008
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Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu - Chennai

Relief distribution on in phased manner

Staff Reporter

To prevent overcrowding at designated centres and to ensure a smooth exercise

— Photo: K. V. Srinivasan

STIRRING: Residents of Mavadi Vinayakar Koil Street stage a road roko on Lloyds Road demanding flood relief for all rain-affected families.

CHENNAI: District Collector Mythili K.Rajendran on Thursday assured that all low-income group families affected in last month’s torrential rain would receive the flood relief amount of Rs.2,000 announced by the government.

She told The Hindu that the work to distribute the relief amount was being carried out across the city in a phased manner to ensure that it was smooth and to prevent overcrowding at the designated centres.

“It is also not possible to send official teams entrusted with the task of distributing the relief to all pockets on one day,” she added. A total of 843 government employees have been deputed for the flood relief work. The relief amount was being disbursed through 84 centres.

On the reports that some persons are going around telling the beneficiaries that they would get them the relief money for a commission, Ms.Rajendran said police have taken action against such persons.

According to a press release, till Thursday a total of 3,89,089 affected residents received Rs.77,81,78,000 as relief. On Thursday alone 61,805 families received the relief amount.

However, the protests by residents of several localities demanding their inclusion in the list of beneficiaries continued in the city and suburbs on Thursday.

Residents of Tambaram, Mannadi, Broadway, Kotturpuram, Maduravoyal and Ayanavaram, staged road roko and disrupted traffic movement seeking the relief.

In Royapettah, residents of Mavadi Vinayakar Koil Street, off Lloyds Road, blocked traffic, demanding that officials of the Revenue Department visit their area. They complained that only a few families had been identified to receive the relief amount.

Dhanalakshmi, a home-maker, who was part of the protestors, said her husband, a daily wage labourer at a printing press had not gone to work for a week during the rain last month.

“I now need a loan to pay the house rent,” she said.

Saroja, who is a diabetic, said she developed injuries on her feet from walking in rainwater and they would not heal easily because of high sugar levels.

She had to make frequent trips to the hospital for treatment of the injuries.

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