CHENNAI: An eviction drive to clear encroachments along the banks of Adyar in Anakaputhur on Saturday sparked outrage as residents took to the streets to protest the move. Traffic was affected for an hour in Anakaputhur near Pammal following the protest.
As part of the Adyar River restoration project, the removal of encroachments along the banks has been undertaken by Chennai Rivers Restoration Trust (CRRT). The eviction drive to clear 700 encroachments in Anakaputhur was started by the revenue department on Saturday.
However, residents alleged that they were not intimated of the drive and tension prevailed as they confronted the officials. However, an official from the revenue department refuted the allegations. “Prior eviction notice has been given to all residents,” he said. Around 500 police personnel were deployed to prevent any untoward incident.“We were caught off guard by the drive,” said Madhusudhan, a resident of Anakaputhur.
R Komathy, another resident, alleged that his house had been demolished despite a stay order against the drive. “I have all documents for my land and a supporting court order in my favour. But officials went ahead and demolished my house without providing any alternate arrangements to us. My family is on the streets now,” he told TNIE. As per the Trust, alternate housing and temporary sustenance allowance should be provided for encroachment clearance.
Refuting the allegations of some of the residents, Pallavaram tahsildar T Arumugam said, “Alternate housing has been provided at Tamil Nadu Urban Habitat Development Board settlements in Kishkinta, Thailavaram and Keerapakkam. Transportation, temporary allowance and food are provided to everyone. A total of 40 houses were cleared today. The rest of the encroachments will be cleared in the coming days.”
S Vijayakumar, member secretary of CRRT, told TNIE, “There are no legal hurdles to clear the encroachments. Some residents are giving misleading information on the drive. All facilities are provided by the officials to relocate the residents.”