Maradu residents make more demands

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Caught in a row: Alfa Serene apartments, one of the four Maradu flats ordered to be demolished by the Supreme Court.

CMO says rehabilitation a humanitarian issue and not comparable to any other eviction

Residents in the Maradu complexes that have been ordered by the Supreme Court to be demolished complained that the residential units identified by the district administration for their temporary rehabilitation were actually not available or vacant. Besides, some of them complained that the rents being demanded by some of the landlords were not affordable.

However, the District Collector said that these residential units were identified and suggested to those coming out of the Maradu housing units in consultation with the residents’ associations. The details were collected from the builders and the residential associations were given information on the basis of these consultations, the Collector said.

‘No obligation’

At the same time, the district administration is not obliged or bound to provide rehabilitation facilities to those who are coming out of the Maradu units. “We tried our best and and took our time to find out a source of some relief for the residents and to help them,” said District Collector S. Suhas.

Those who are coming out of the residential units are being given a compensation of ₹25 lakh according to the Supreme Court verdict. It is up to them to relocate on their own, he added.

Shamsudheen Karunagappally, chairman of Maradu Bhavana Samrakshana Samithi, claimed that none of the 510 flats identified by the district revenue authorities at Edachira were actually available. The flats were not vacant and when contacted, some of the residents in the units were angry that they were being contacted at all, he said.

Rental rates

One of the residents moving out of Maradu claimed that the rates being demanded by some landowners was unaffordable. A person in the know of the rental rates in Kakkanad and surrounding areas said that the running rate for a two-bed-room flat ranged between ₹12,000 to ₹15,000 plus maintenance charges between ₹3,000 and ₹5,000 a month.

‘Humanitarian issue’

Meanwhile, the Chief Minister’s Office, in a press note, said that the government had taken all measures to demolish the buildings as ordered by the Supreme Court. “Measures are also being taken, as ordered by the court, to rehabilitate the residents and give them compensation. Rehabilitating them is not just an obligation on the basis of the Supreme Court order, it’s also a humanitarian issue. Therefore, it’s being seen as the government’s responsibility…” the note said.

The press note also said that the Maradu issue was not comparable to any other eviction. The government was constitutionally obliged to implement the apex court order. Which was why it could not be compared to any other eviction, the note maintained.


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