Chief Minister to inaugurate 252 free houses for Sri Lankan Tamils in Tiruvannamalai soon

M.K. Stalin to inaugurate 252 houses for Sri Lankan Tamils in Tiruvannamalai, providing safe accommodation with basic amenities.

Chief Minister M.K. Stalin will soon inaugurate 252 houses built for Sri Lankan Tamils living in rehabilitation camps in Tiruvannamalai. Officials of the District Rural Development Agency (DRDA) are currently giving finishing touches to these new houses.

DRDA officials said that Sri Lankan Tamils have been living in dilapidated single room houses with bare minimum facilities since camps were set up in early 1990s. The new houses are ready for those families living in camps at Sorakolathur and Thenpallipet villages in Thurinjapuram block. “Currently, painting work is under way in the new houses for Sri Lankan Tamils. The work will be completed within a week,” said S. Aruna, Assistant Engineer at the Block Development Office, Thurinjapuram.

On Thursday, Collector K. Tharpagaraj, along with Tiruvannamalai BDO M. Prithiviraj, inspected construction of free houses in Nallavanpalayam village near Tiruvannamalai town. Around 140 houses are being built for Sri Lankan Tamil families living in camps at Athiyandal and Kannandampoondi villages. The construction of most of the houses in Nallavanpalayam will be completed in three months.

“The new house is like a dream coming true for us as all these years we have been living in a cramped house with poor amenities. The new house will provide a safe accommodation for our children,” said R. Pandiammal, a resident. 

DRDA officials said that of the total 941 houses sanctioned for Sri Lankan Tamils in the district, work on 694 houses, including 140 houses at Nallavanpalayam, is under way. Each house, on an average, will cost ₹8.10 lakh for the State Exchequer. Each house, which will be 291 sq.ft, will have a living room, bedroom, attached washroom and a kitchen. The new house will have a free water connection and power supply. In addition, Over Head Tank (OHTs) will also be built in the camp.

The camp with new houses will also get a community centre, a common centre for children and a fair price shop. Approach roads to the camp area from the main road will also be re-laid. Some major areas in Tiruvannamalai where work for free houses has been taken up include Polur (280 houses), Kalasapakkam (160 houses), Tiruvannamalai (136 houses), Arani (111 houses) and Cheyyar (80 houses).