CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu Slum Clearance Board has issued notices to all petty shops set up by residents in the board tenements at Navalur, without permission to close down shops by Wednesday.
To a community of resettled residents, who have lost their livelihood, the small shops come as the only way to eke out a living, residents say. “At Guduvancherry, I did whatever work I could get. Here I’m not in a position to take three buses and go for work,” said 67-year-old Devarajan K. He and his 62-year-old wife Vidya, have a small provision store through which they earn Rs 4000 a month. “We are now scared that the officials may come and create a ruckus,” she said.
The board had auctioned 16 shops, each around 8x8 feet. However, residents said the minimum rent was fixed at Rs 3400.
When contacted, a senior slum board official said only if the shops functioning without their permission are closed, shops that have been auctioned can do business. “If they think they need more shops, they must contact us with their requirements. Then, we will do whatever is necessary officially,” the official said.