An official says steps were taken to rebuild houses under 10 schemes in North Chennai this year.
Incidents of roof and wall collapses in houses built by the Tamil Nadu Urban Habitat Development Board (TNUHDB) in Chennai have exposed the poor condition of the decades-old tenements and threatened the lives of residents.
In one such incident, a 48-year-old resident of a TNUHDB tenement in Srinivasapuram was injured after a part of a concrete balcony fell. According to a senior officer of the Metropolitan Police, A Mohan, who was living with his family on the second floor of the 29th block, was working as an electrician. He fell from the top of the balcony while he was standing on the balcony of the house. The incident happened around 10 pm on Sunday night. Neighbors took him to Royapettah Government Hospital. A case was then registered at the Foreshore Estate Police Station.
A tragic incident took place in the same Srinivasapuram tenement last December 5. 23-year-old S. Syed Ghulam, resident of Block No. 6, died after a concrete slab fell from the window of Block No. 133. After his death, locals blocked the road.
In another incident, a portion of the damaged concrete roof of a TNUHDB tenement house on Vrindavan Street in West Mambalam collapsed on Saturday. A resident V. Manibharti said: “The incident took place on the ground floor of the 9th block. My neighbor Vijayakumar had a narrow escape when he stepped out just before the roof collapsed. We have repeatedly raised the issue of poor infrastructure with the authorities but are awaiting a permanent solution. He said that the house was built 50 years ago.
Vanessa Peter, founder of Information and Resource Center for Disadvantaged Urban Communities, said TNUHDB should play an active role in accelerating the reconstruction of dilapidated tenements by facilitating inclusive and participatory planning. She also said that the state government should develop a robust quality assessment mechanism to periodically monitor TNUHDB tenements.
A senior TNUHDB official said steps have been taken to reconstruct houses under 10 schemes in North Chennai this year. Proposals for reconstruction of tenements in both Srinivasapuram and Paschim Mambalam will be prepared after assessment in early 2025. Residents of dilapidated tenements will be asked to vacate as reconstruction will take around 18 months to complete. The government will provide a one-time subsidy of Rs 24,000, he added.
published – December 24, 2024 at 12:59 pm IST