MADURAI
Hundreds of residents from Thevar Nagar and Netaji Nagar on the banks of Vaigai river near Vandiyur petitioned Collector K. Veera Raghava Rao on Monday against Public Works department’s move to evict them from the “encroached area”.
The men and women from the locality, almost all of whom work as daily wagers, said it was unfair to evict them from the area without providing them any alternative accommodation since they had been residing there for decades.
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According to the petitioners, they settled in the place nearly 40 years ago by erecting thatched-roof houses. “In 1987, the houses were changed to tiled-roof structures with the support of Tamil Nadu Slum Clearance Board,” said S.R. Kumar, who led the petitioners.
He said since then, the roughly 300 families had been regularly paying house tax. “The government has also laid roads, provided electricity connection, toilets, voters’ identity cards and ration cards for those in the area,” he added.
Stating that around 60 families in an adjacent area were evicted to facilitate construction of P.T.R. Bridge connecting Anna Nagar and Teppakulam, the petitioners said they were, however, provided land in Sakkimangalam.
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“There are poramboke lands available in areas like Sakkimangalam. If we are provided land there, we are willing to move. They have now given a month’s time to vacate the area. Where are we supposed to go with our children?,” asked a woman from Netaji Nagar.
Mr. Kumar said the residents in the area had been demanding patta for the land since 2007 but no action was taken by the district administration. “Considering the large number of families getting affected, the Collector must immediately intervene and help the poor families,” he added.