THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Karimadom colony is brewing with rancour and rage. The residents of the colony are split, arguing over the new sets of flats allotted under a slum development project. Twenty families who were allotted new flats by the City Corporation are being prevented from entering the houses by a section of residents in the colony. Fearful of a law and order situation to spring up any moment, the Corporation is treading cautiously and is literally finding its hands tied.It is under the Basic Service to Urban Poor (BSUP) scheme that the flats came up in place of shacks in the Karimadom colony. In total, the previous Council had chosen 560 beneficiaries who were provided new housing facilities and they were chosen by the PIU (Project Implementation Unit) of the Corporation along with the Community Organiser in the area. Of these, 26 flats were occupied in the first phase.In the second phase, 20 flats were allotted to those colony people who had been evicted for various construction purposes and those who have been living in the community hall there under pitiable conditions.However, when the 20 families were all set to enter their new homes, a section of colony people challenged their right. "Their main argument is that the residents who used to live in a single shack earlier are being given different flats now and are not being thrown together in one house. That is ridiculous, since the project is all about bettering our conditions. Earlier, more than one family, it might be siblings or offspring, who used to live under a roof. But the Corporation had scrutinised our ration cards and only after confirming that we needed different houses, that the allotment was made,’’ says a resident of the colony who has been allotted a house, but has been stopped from entering it.To make matters worse, the opposite parties have now moved court alleging discrepancies in the beneficiary list, dragging the families into legal tangles. According to them, the Corporation has sided with a few residents who are Kudumbashree members and included them in the list. However, the Corporation officials have brushed aside this allegation."It is a list vetted by the Welfare Standing Committee and the PIU unit. Among these 20 families, there are cancer patients, a leprosy patient, a physically-challenged person and others who are in dire straits. They had waited patiently for the second allotment while they could have raised claim in the first phase. This is the outcome of the scheming of a group of people who are deliberately trying to usurp the flats. Some of these recreants are living outside the colony in rented houses,’’ says Palayam Rajan, Welfare Standing Committee of the Corporation.Three weeks back, during the midnight hours, the agitators tried to break open some of the flats and occupy them. The attempt was foiled by the Corporation and the police then, says Rajan. "It is total anarchy that the recreants are creating there. We know the 20 families are eligible for houses. But we are powerless to use a firm hand since it could give rise to a law and order situation,’’ says Rajan.With each passing day, the situation is turning worse for the 20 families. One of the cancer patients died two weeks back. Another woman, who was living in a shack on the sideway and who was allotted the house, met with a car accident and died almost at the same time. The houses are ready, yet the families remain homeless.
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