KOCHI: Till 2008, K P Sreedevi, aged 80, and Valasala Ramachandran, 70, were close friends and neighbours at Manjummel -- an island which is part of the Kadamakudy panchayat in Ernakulam -- before the construction of the Valaparadam International Transhipment Terminal (ICTT) project separated them. More than 11 years later, both are yet to get houses to live as red-tapism has made incomplete the rehabilitation of more than 75 per cent of evictees.
On Tuesday, Sreedevi and Valsala were chatting about their good old days on the verandah of the PWD rest house in Kochi where the People’s Independent Judicial Commission inquiring into the implementation of Moolampilly package held its sitting to hear the grievances of evictees.
“At this age, I can hardly walk to government offices for rehabilitation. Our four cents of land in Manjummel were taken for the project. In return, we were given four cents in Thuthiyoor near Kakkanad. Though we have received the documents for the land, it is yet to be demarcated properly. Also, the land provided to us is a marshy area and the construction of a house is impossible. Though rehabilitation is yet to be completed, the government has stopped giving us the monthly rent of Rs 5,000 from 2012,” lamented Sreedevi.
Valasala said she is yet to receive any land as part of rehabilitation. “A major portion of our house and plot was taken over for the project. Since we decided to live in the remaining portion of the land, proper compensation was denied. We erected a small tent and have been staying there for the past decade,” she said.
In between, the eviction of residents from four apartment complexes in Maradu also popped up. “While we are still to get proper rehabilitation even after 11 years, the government is arranging alternative accommodation and Rs 25 lakh initial payment for the Maradu flat owners, who have made CRZ violations,” pointed out Sreedevi.
P T Francis, 58, who was evicted from Moolampilly, has been making rounds of village and taluk offices for the past 10 years but he is yet to have a house of his own. “I had to shift my family to the house of a relative. Still, we are living there. I was given land in Thuthiyoor. But until now, I don’t know if the land exists or not. We have been duped by successive governments as none of the promises made have been kept up until now,” he said.
Mary Joseph, 53, who was evicted from Manjummel, constructed a house in a plot allotted in Kothadu. However, in less than five years, Mary is looking for alternative options. “Around 18 families were granted land in Kothadu. However, the land provided was not suited for constructing houses. There is no proper road connectivity even after 10 years. The drinking water crisis is severe. Only two families constructed houses in Kothadu. Since it was filled land, both houses were damaged,” she said.