PALAKKAD: The government will provide houses for the inmates of the Chellankavu tribal colony, said A K Balan, Minister for Welfare of Scheduled Castes and Tribes. He was speaking after visiting the colony where five people died after consuming illicit liquor last week.
Work on the unfinished houses will also be completed and made habitable, he said.
The tragedy has shone the spotlight on several houses in the colony located between Kanjikode and Walayar which are in a state of disrepair. Contractors who undertook the work of the houses had abandoned it midway.
A sum of Rs 1 crore has been allotted by the Department of Scheduled Castes and Tribes to the Kerala State Nirmithi Kendra for the construction of the houses, the minister said. Additional funds will be sanctioned, based on requirement. The colony residents will also be given assistance to cultivate crops in their one-acre land. Rearing of cows will also be encouraged, he said.
Aid for kin of deceased
The minister said talks have been held with the chief minister regarding financial assistance to be provided to the families of the deceased. He said that he has received the report by the district collector and the director of the Scheduled Castes and Tribes Department on the tragedy.
The minister also visited the three children of the deceased Sivan — Sibin, Sibu and Sijitha — and assured them of help. He said the children could either stay at their house or choose to live in government hostels. Though the children were taken to the hostel of the Social Justice department in Nallepilly, they expressed their desire to return to the colony. They are currently under the care of the ooru mooppan, Viswanathan, he said.
The minister said the children will be enrolled at the Model Residential School. He called on the elected representatives, officials and the ooru moopan to ensure there is no repeat of such incidents in their respective wards.
5,449 litres of wash seized in one month
The minister said that the Excise personnel seized 80 kgs of ganja, 26 kgs of tobacco products, 24.4 litres of ‘arishtam’, 50 litres of arrack, 5,449 litres of wash, 34 litres of spirit, 565 litres of IMFL, 1,176 litres of toddy, 29 ganja plants and 17 vehicles in the last one month in the district. A total of 142 people have been arrested in this regard. The minister also visited Kamalam, one of the survivors who had consumed the hooch, at her house.