Two years after the displaced Muslim families of Kalyannagar slums started their agitation to seek rehabilitation and were promised in-situ homes by the Vadodara Municipal Corporation (VMC), they are back to square one. Close to 500 families, who were shunted out of a housing draw by the civic body after residents of the “peaceful, developed” Hindu neighbourhood of Sayajipura objected to their move, stare at an uncertain future as the construction work on their redeveloped homes has come to a grinding halt. The reason: An inquiry instituted by the VMC Commissioner into the escalation of the project cost after the estimated budget went up from Rs 80 crore to Rs 150 crore. On Friday afternoon, under a marquee set up between the Masjid and a temple that still stand as a symbol of communal harmony at the site of the demolished Kalyannagar slums, affected residents gathered to pledge their support to a new phase of agitation against the civic body. Led by Muslim activists Dr J S Bandukwala, Zuber Gopalani, Shaukat Indori, the residents committed to fight for their right to their homes. Congress corporators Farid Cutpiecewala and Ami Ravat, Opposition Leader Chandrakant Shrivastav and GPCC General Secretary Narendra Ravat also joined them. The construction of 700 homes under Rajiv Awas Yojana (RAY) to rehabilitate the Kalyannagar families came to a halt when the contractor left the site midway in February. According to the original proposal of the VMC, the estimated cost of construction of the homes was Rs 80 crore. However, the affordable housing department of the VMC revised the estimated budget to Rs 150 crore, with a near 100 per cent escalation, prompting VMC Commissioner Vinod Rao to set up an inquiry against the Additional City Engineer F J Charpot, who was also transferred from his position in the housing department. Congress corporator Ami Ravat said that the escalation of cost was not the fault of the residents and they must not agree to any revised costs. “It is unbelievable that the VMC escalates a project cost midway. Any construction must follow a process. You first plan, design and draw out a budget and then you begin the execution of the project. They must explain how the cost escalation happened midway. Moreover, whatever be the reason, the promise made to the beneficiaries is that they would be rehabilitated. The civic body has to adhere to its promise,” Ravat said. Addressing the gathering, Bandukwala urged the residents to be united in their fight. He said, “You have to be united and firm in your fight for your right. It might be a long-drawn process, and I pray to the Almighty that it should not be, but we have fought a long battle to reach this far. We must not give up now because it is only a test of our patience. If the civic body intends to move us to Muslim ghettos by delaying this project, we must not agree to that compromise as true development can be achieved in a cosmopolitan society.” The representatives also submitted a memorandum to the VMC on Friday, demanding immediate action from the civic body in completing the construction work and allotment of homes. According to VMC officials, the civic body is in a quandary as the officials have already paid the contracted developer the entire Rs 80 crore that was cleared as part of the original proposal while the construction work has not reached even halfway. According to officials, the cost of the project as gone up as the structure needed additional piling for strength. While the homes were to initially cost approximately Rs 5.5 lakh per unit, the escalation means that the per unit cost has risen up to Rs 10 lakh — a figure that the beneficiaries are unwilling to bear the burden of. Arif Pathan, a representative of the Kalyannagar families, said, “First, we were left on the streets for almost a year until May 2015 when a housing draw was cancelled because of objections of residents. Then political leaders urged us to agree to shift to a Muslim ghetto before finally conceding to construct our homes at the same site. After a wait of a year and a half, we still have no certainty on the outcome. The civic body also withholds our rental compensation at will.” The families received three months’ pending rental compensation at the rate of Rs 3000 per month after submitting memorandums in February. Rao said that the construction had stopped as the VMC had run out of approved funds for the project. “The work has stopped because of excessive cost escalation that has happened against the approved cost of Rs 80 crore. The likely escalation is another Rs 70 crore, which is almost 100 per cent. Even Rs 80 crore that was approved should not have been paid already. "In any project at least 10 per cent of the amount is withheld till the completion of the project. This is why we have stopped the project and initiated an inquiry against the Additional City Engineer. If the cost escalation is double, we will not be able to pay beyond what has been approved.” Rao blamed the escalation of costs on the design of the project. “We are in a tricky situation as we have already spent the approved Rs 80 crore.” When asked if the VMC will shift the onus of the inflated cost on the beneficiaries, Rao said, “When the previous commissioner had agreed to accommodate them at the same site, a clause was added to the minutes of the meeting that whatever cost arises over and above the estimated cost is to be borne by the beneficiaries. We do not know how much of this will happen now.” Rao remained non-committal about a deadline to complete the housing project and hand over homes to the families. He said, “It is a sensitive issue which has to be dealt with taking all aspects into consideration. There is financial liability, legal commitment before the court and the responsibility of ensuring rehabilitation for these innocent families. They are not to be blamed for what has happened. We are also recurring an unnecessary liability of the rent. It is a question of Rs 70 crore. We are working out a solution.”
