Evicted,slum-dwellers cry foul

The Trinamool Congress government had said it would not evict any slum-dweller without a rehabilitation programme. In this case,authorities said that only the new encroachers had been removed and the old ones remained.

“The government had said that while it had a compassionate outlook for slum-dwellers,any encroachment after May 2011 would not be allowed. In the last 2-3 months,these 250-odd families had been settled on around 4 acres of the 15-acre plot of the KMDA. We had given them several notices in the last 10-15 days to vacate this place but no one paid heed to it. Today,the drive was carried out,” said Sushanta Chattopadhyay,official spokesperson of KMDA.

Urban development minister Firhad Hakim said he had made a recce of the place and only the new structures had been razed. He also alleged that among the encroachers,there were several anti-social elements.

“There was a small demonstration from the Matingini Hazra Bahini against it. Among the dwellers,many had come from Garbeta and Midnapore (E) and wanted to create a Naxalite den here,” he said. He added that the land was to be utilised for dwelling units to be built under the Basic Service for the Urban Poor project.

Those rendered homeless,however had a different story. “We have been living here for about five years and one fine morning we were asked to evict the place. We had put in several petitions but to no avail,” said Ujjal Saha,a slum-dweller.

He said the officials didn’t even give enough time to get the tiles off the sheds,which could be reused. “They did not spare a thought for the 700-plus people who have been left without a roof,” he said,alleging that the shanties were burnt after they were brought down. “It has been done to ensure that we do not reuse the bamboo and thatch sheets to relocate elsewhere,” he said.

Hakim,however,brushed aside the allegation and said they had done it themselves.

Many said they had been cheated by the new government. “After we wrote to Firhad Hakim,he met us and assured us that we would not be removed. He did not keep his word,” said Gautam Das,another shanty-dweller.

Many have decided to spend the night in the open field and sleep inside the huge pipes lying in the vicinity. “I finished preparing lunch when these people bulldozed our homes in front of our eyes,” said Bachhu Das. His wife Sonamoni Das was busy looking for a ‘liveable’ pipe to spend the night with their two children.