With thousands of residents likely to be resettled for various civic projects to be implemented in the city in three years, the Chennai Corporation has assured to pay evicted people their monthly earnings to cope with the changes in their source of livelihood.
The Corporation officials gave this assurance of a payment of the monthly earnings for a few months to the project affected families at a meeting with the World Bank officials last week. The civic body will generate a list of beneficiaries with actual monthly earnings as part of the initiative.
The World Bank has already told the Corporation that funding of the civic projects is conditional, advising the civic body to implement schemes to ‘reduce extreme poverty’ and ‘promote shared prosperity.’ The civic body was also asked to study the environment and the social impact of the proposed projects.
“The decision to pay monthly earnings for a few months to the affected residents will reduce the impact on their families after resettlement,” said an official.
Even years after the Corporation Council approved pedestrian and storm water drain projects, funds were not approved due to a lack of proper study of the social and environmental aspects of the projects.
Families identified for resettlement along the canals for the integrated storm water drains in added areas will get the money shortly.