The Hindu 23.02.2013
Houses for pavement dwellers by June-end
The Tamil Nadu Slum Clearance Board will provide alternative accommodation to encroachers on Muthuswami Salai and Thangai Murugappa Street before June-end.
The Board made the submission before a First Bench of the Madras High Court comprising acting Chief Justice R.K. Agrawal and Justice N. Paul Vasanthakumar. The Bench disposed of a public interest petition in this regard.
The petitioner, K.R. Ramaswamy alias ‘Traffic’ Ramaswamy, a social activist, asked the court for a direction to the authorities to consider his representation from September last year to rehabilitate the poor who were being neglected.
The Tamil Nadu Slum Clearance Board (TNSCB) filed a counter and said if the Chennai Corporation identified hut dwellers, the Board would take appropriate action wherever necessary to provide them alternative accommodation.
The Corporation filed a report and said, 259 families had encroached on Muthuswami Salai near Raja Annamalai Mandram and 87 families had encroached on Thangai Murugappa Street (off Wall Tax Road). A petition had been filed by Mr. Ramaswamy to evict the families.
Enumeration
of the families was done and a list sent to the TNSCB for providing
alternative accommodation. The board’s counsel said that alternative
accommodation would be provided to the families before June-end.
