It was among the first projects launched to meet the housing needs of city police personnel. Four decades later, the government quarters in the heart of the city is crying for attention with police personnel and their families struggling for water and having to put up with an all-round decay of basic amenities.
The Tamil Nadu Police Housing Corporation’s quarters at Cochin House, Greams Road and a similar facility close by – Mansion Site were fine examples of a government project for community living in the initial years.
There are over 500 houses in the two complexes. The quarters are located in the midst of lush greenery and that is the only notable feature about them, says a serving sub-inspector, who has been living in a first-floor flat for 22 years.
A walk around the quarters reveals mounds of garbage have piled up in the vacant spaces between the blocks. Chokes in the internal underground drainage system cause sewage to overflow and stagnate, forcing people to wade through it when it rains.
The sub-inspector points to a ground-floor flat where the monthly subsidised ration issued by the State government is stocked. The flat gets surrounded by sewage and poses a potential health risk. Chennai Metrowater fills up roadside plastic water tanks and each family receives about 10 plastic pots of water. Since water from Chennai Metrowater is not enough, families hire private water tankers. The water is stored and in huge plastic drums and then pumped to overhead water tanks on the terrace.
G. Subramanian, a retired Inspector, who was an occupant in one of the flats for close to 20 years, said crumbling plaster work and exposed iron beams of the tank posed a risk.
Staff at TNPHC said the government sanctioned money for carrying out repair work at many of its projects across the State, but maintenance on a daily basis had to be done by the flat occupants themselves, as is being done in private apartment complexes too. They just did not have the manpower or even the resources to clean up the vacant spaces in these flats, staff said.
