A team from World Bank on Saturday inspected the tsunami and earthquake-resistant apartments being constructed under the Urban Housing Component of the Emergency Tsunami Reconstruction Project (ETRP) in Nochi Nagar.
A total of 628 single bedroom apartments are being constructed for residents of Nochi Nagar. They will be ready for occupation in July 2011. The total number of apartments to be reconstructed in Nochi Kuppam, Nochi Nagar and Domming Kuppam is 2,280.
As the reconstruction of the four-storeyed tenements is nearing completion, many beneficiaries are visiting the site every day. According to the records available with the private security guard at the construction site, over 100 visitors come every day.
According to sources, the World Bank team asked the Tamil Nadu Slum Clearance Board to take efforts to shift the beneficiaries to temporary shelters to facilitate reconstruction of the dilapidated tenements in Nochi Kuppam before March 31.
As some residents of Nochi Kuppam have demanded two reconstructed houses for accommodating all family members, the TNSCB is likely opt for a subsidised hire purchase scheme for allotting additional house for such beneficiaries.
“Space crunch in the TNSCB tenements has forced over 100 families to live in the adjacent temple land on rent. They have not been allotted house in the reconstructed tenements,” said S.Rudramurthy, a 72-year-old resident of Nochi Kuppam. “I have shifted to the temporary shelter. The temporary shelter or the reconstructed tenement does not have space to accommodate all my family members,” he added.
“The reluctance of the residents of Nochi Kuppam to vacate the dilapidated tenements is because of a lack of consensus among them on the issue,” said Mr.Rudramurthy. Some residents of Doming Kuppam have made a representation to the TNSCB for reconstruction of tenements, said Corporation councillor Selvi Sownderrajan.
