The Hindu : Front Page : Tirupur slums to be modernised

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Sunday, May 06, 2007
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Tirupur slums to be modernised

M. Gunasekaran

FOR INFRASTRUCTURE: The slums in Tirupur will soon get better amenities at over Rs. 20 crore. - Photo: M. Balaji

TIRUPUR: Twenty-seven out of the total 87 slums in the dollar town of Tirupur, where more than a third of the population lives in sub-human conditions, will soon get better amenities at a cost of over Rs. 20 crore.

The Centre approved a few days ago a revised proposal under the Integrated Housing and Slum Development Programme submitted by Tirupur Municipality.

"The Central Sanctioning Committee has cleared the project at a meeting in New Delhi on Thursday. Tirupur Municipality gets the highest amount of grant from the Centre in Tamil Nadu,'' Municipal Commissioner M. Ashokan, who attended the meeting, told The Hindu.

The State Level Sanctioning Committee led by the Local Administration Minister forwarded the proposal. Commissioner of Municipal Administration made efforts to get the scheme cleared by the Centre, Mr Ashokan said.

Of the total project cost of Rs. 20.68 crore, beneficiaries have to contribute a mere Rs. 1.49 crore. While the Centre will extend a grant of Rs. 16.16 crore, the State will give Rs. 3.02 crore for the project. The local body will have no financial burden.

Half of the amount, precisely Rs. 10.63 crore, will be spent to construct and upgrade houses. A total of 1,582 shelters will be upgraded while 478 will be constructed in the 27 slums. While Rs. 4.64 crore will be allotted to create sewerage facility to a length of 18.56 km, storm water drains will be constructed at 12 places at Rs. 3.82 crore.

The slums would get roads and pavements. All houses would get water connection and two community halls would be constructed, sources said.

A study said in the 27.19-sq km town, set to be upgraded as the State's seventh Municipal Corporation, 1.26 lakh residents out of the 3.52 lakh (36 per cent) live in 87 slums.

Sources said 36 slums were notified as unobjectionable while 51 were notified under the objectionable category as they are on the railway land, private lands, road margins and kulam, kuttai and river poramboke, the sources said.

"Once the development works are executed they will cease to be slums and declared normal areas. Hygiene and sanitary conditions will be improved in these localities,'' Mr. Ashokan said.

The selected slums include at M.S. Nagar, Chinna Nagar, Kumarappapuram Colony, M.G.R. Nagar, Anaikkadu, Soosaiapuram, Military Colony, Mangalam Road Harijan Colony, A.S. Pandit Nagar, Sadiq Batcha Nagar, Jawans Nagar, Bharathidasan Colony and Perichipalayam.

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