KALPETTA: Questions continue to mount over the beneficiaries of the Congress-led Mundakkai-Chooralmala rehabilitation housing project in Wayanad, even after the foundation stone was laid on Thursday. From the time the scheme was announced, one fundamental question has remained unanswered: who exactly will receive the houses?
According to the state government’s official beneficiary list prepared after the Chooralmala-Mundakkai landslide, 410 families were found eligible for housing under the government rehabilitation project. Of these, 327 families opted to remain within the government’s township scheme, while the rest chose to accept houses offered by other organisations after receiving Rs 15 lakh from the government.
The IUML is constructing 105 houses for beneficiaries drawn largely from the government-approved list, along with a few families who were not included in the original list. In addition, several other organisations have together built around 50 houses for the affected families.
Meanwhile, around 70 families from Padavettikunnu, Attamala, and School Road are demanding inclusion in the official beneficiary list and thereby housing support. However, their demand is specifically for houses under the government project, not under those being constructed by the Congress or other organisations.
“These families belong to the ‘go zone’ marked by the John Mathai Commission. Though these areas were not directly affected, they are located very close to the landslide site and the families are still living in rented houses without any assistance from the government,” said Naseer Alakkal, convener of the landslide victim action committee, Janashabdam.
“Their demand is for government houses, not for those built by the Muslim League or the Congress. They have discussed the matter with the district administration and a committee headed by the land revenue commissioner has been formed to examine their case,” he said.
From the beginning, the Congress leadership has not provided a clear answer on who the beneficiaries of its housing project will be. In a recent response to TNIE, Congress Wayanad district vice-president Samshad Marakkar said beneficiaries would be selected only after construction is completed.
“Our primary aim is to complete the construction of the houses. There are many families in the Chooralmala-Attamala region who were not included in the government’s official list. Congress will consider including them in our list,” he said.
Also, there are allegations that certain local Congress leaders are attempting to include their relatives in the party’s beneficiary list. However, Marakkar rejected the claims.
“At present, we aren’t collecting applications from anyone. When applications are received, they will be scrutinised by a screening committee. The merit of each case will be examined before a final decision is taken,” he added.
The CPM leadership in Wayanad, however, has expressed doubts about whether the Congress will complete the houses at all.
“There has been no transparency in the Congress project. They haven’t revealed how much money has been collected or who the beneficiaries will be. In contrast, the state government will complete all 410 houses in the township.
All beneficiaries who have not opted out will be accommodated there. Additionally, the government is reviewing complaints regarding the list. Since there are sufficient houses, all deserving families will be provided housing,” said C K Saseendran, a senior CPM leader and former Kalpetta MLA.
Yet the central question persists: if most eligible families have already chosen either the government scheme or houses built by other organisations, who will ultimately occupy the homes constructed under the Congress project?
Included beneficiaries
According to the state govt’s official beneficiary list, 410 families were found eligible for housing under the govt rehabilitation project
Of these, 327 families opted to remain within the govt’s township scheme, while the rest chose to accept houses offered by other organisations after receiving I15 lakh from the govt
IUML is constructing 105 houses for beneficiaries drawn largely from the govt-approved list, along with a few families who were not included in original list