The sound of vessels falling to the floor dominate the first few seconds of the phone line as 56-year-old Manohar begins talking. The resident of Kuppaimedu area in Chennai's Mandaveli, is attempting to pack up his entire life in a span of hours and move out before his home is completely demolished.
"My family of four is moving to my mother's small house in Thoraipakkam. I don't know how I will even travel to my workplace in Korattur from there or how my daughter will come to her office in T Nagar everyday. But the government has left us with no choice," he tells TNM.
Manohar is amongst the 324 families in Kuppaimedy whose thatched houses are being demolished by the Tamil Nadu Slum Clearance board without warning. The demolition began on Tuesday morning and despite residents requesting, even begging officials for more time in view of the pandemic, their houses were forcefully destroyed. Many of them were given just minutes to remove their belongings from the house. So far, 100 houses have been razed down.
"Our area has a lot of COVID-19 cases and destruction of these homes means that even people who were recovering and in isolation have been forced out to the road," he laments. "And because so many of us have been rendered homeless at once, landlords are using this situation to their advantage and demanding inflated rents," he adds.
According to residents of Kuppaimedu, threats and intimidation was used to force them out of their houses.
52-year-old Sundar who was part of a residents committee which was negotiating with the Tamil Nadu Slum Clearance board states that the initial eviction was slated for March but due to the lockdown, discussions came to a halt.
"We were ready to leave then but everything was cancelled because of the pandemic. There was no way to move houses. So we all stayed put," says Sundar. "But when the officials came on Monday, they said that if we don't move now, they won't give us a house in the newly constructed building which will come in its place," he adds. The thatched houses in the area are going to be rebuilt under the Pradhan Mantri Awas Yojana to accommodate 500 families as opposed to the existing 324.
"They want to build eight floors with an elevator. But we only have five floors and no elevator. We are lower middle class and poor people. We can't afford to maintain the elevator. But they are not listening to any of our demands. Anything we say, is met with threats," says Sundar. "Some of the people who have been left in the lurch now are above 70 years old. Where will they go and search for a house now?"he asks.
According to Maran, most relatives are unwilling to accommodate stranded residents due to fear of the virus.
"Some people have moved all their belongings and are literally on the road," he says. "We are not saying we won't leave. But to demolish our houses without warning and to leave us on the road is cruel. They don't even care about us getting infected by the virus. Are we not humans too?" he asks.
When TNM reached out to the local health authorities, they claimed they were not informed about the demolition and refused to comment on the matter.