Chennai Kannappar Thidal Slum residents allotted houses with shoddy amenities

Residents of Kannappar Thidal, a shelter at Chennai’s Egmore, have been allotted permanent houses by the Tamil Nadu state government. On October 5, residents were moved to the houses in Moolakothalam, site of the Tamil Nadu Urban Habitat Development Board (TNUHDB). While the construction of the Moolakothalam houses were completed five years ago, several blocks and houses in those blocks have shoddy amenities. There are no lights on the corridors of the building, elevators are dysfunctional in the 9-storied building, and plumbing work seems pending in several houses, among others. The families of Kannappar Thidal who have been dreaming of a permanent house since 2001 are now not only offered houses with shoddy amenities but are also forced to shell out Rs 594 every month for the next 22 years to gain complete ownership of these houses.