CHENNAI: Nisha Sathyaraj, a 34-year-old resident of Goparasanallur near Kattupakkam in Poonamallee, woke up on Wednesday morning to find nearly 100 police personnel, taluk officials and bulldozers outside her home. Within hours, seven houses in the locality were demolished allegedly without providing alternative rehabilitation to the affected families. The officials said the land is classified as kuttai (waterbody).
Speaking to the TNIE, Nisha said her family has been living in the area for nearly four decades. “There is a pond on the opposite side of the road. When there is a road separating it from our houses, we don’t understand how our land is classified as kuttai,” she said, adding they have been paying electricity and water bills since 1984.
She said the families received their first eviction notice on June 6 and the sixth notice on June 22. The government officials had been visiting the locality daily since Monday.
She claimed when she approached the sub collector earlier this week, she was told alternative land would be provided before the eviction. “Instead, our belongings were removed and shifted to a nearby community hall, and our houses were demolished. Isn’t it basic to provide alternative housing before evicting families?” she asked.
Nisha said she had already moved the court by filing a writ petition on June 30 challenging the eviction. “Before we could obtain a stay order, the demolition was carried out,” she alleged.
Most of the affected residents are daily-wage labourers, while Nisha’s husband works as an AC mechanic. The family has two children aged six years and two-and-a-half years. Her father-in-law is paralysed, and mother-in-law suffers from TB. “Officials later told us houses may be allotted after a few months at a location nearly 30 km away, and that we have to pay a beneficiary amount of Rs 5 lakh. Until then, where are we supposed to live?” she asked.
Nisha is currently staying with her sister, while several other displaced families have taken shelter in a nearby community hall. The families urge the government to provide them with immediate alternative housing. The TNIE couldn’t reach out to the officials immediately.