Nochikuppam residents protest

Fed up with living in makeshift homes made of tin sheets, residents of Nochikuppam, a fishing hamlet in the city are demanding that the government begin construction of their 534 houses.

The residents had been asked to move out of their homes by the Tamil Nadu Slum Clearance Board five years ago as the buildings were in bad shape and needed to be rebuilt.

After the residents moved out, they sought 700-odd dwellings saying that their numbers had increased.

However, during enumeration it was found that many had submitted fake records. Residents had also objected to the allotment of houses for those who did not belong to the fishing community.

Now, the residents have agreed to the original allotments and are urging the Slum Clearance Board to take up construction immediately.

On Monday, a section of residents staged a road roko on Kamaraj Salai demanding speedy construction of their houses by the board.

B. Maran, Tamil Nadu Meenava Munnetra Sangam and Nochukuppam resident said that living conditions in the temporary shelters were very poor.