Seventy families were living in thatched roof houses since 1990 after fleeing their homeland
Seventy families were living in thatched roof houses since 1990 after fleeing their homeland
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin inaugurated Sri Lankan Tamil Rehabilitation camp at Thottanuthu village in Dindigul via video conferencing from Chennai on Wednesday.
Cooperation Minister I. Periyasamy, Food and Civil Supplies Minister R. Sakkarapani and Minority Welfare and Non-Resident Tamil Welfare Minister Jinji KS Mastan handed over the keys of houses to the beneficiaries in Dindigul.
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In this rehabilitation camp spread over 7 acres, 321 houses have been built at a total cost of Rs 17.84 crore. Each house under the project covers an area of 300 square feet. A living room, kitchen, a bedroom and a toilet have been built at a cost of 4.95 lakhs.
The camp has cement and tar roads with an overhead water tank with a capacity of 60,000 liters, street lights and public toilet facilities etc. The project was completed within nine months of the foundation stone laying in December last year.
Cooperation Minister I. Periyasamy hands over the house keys to a beneficiary at the newly constructed Sri Lankan Tamil Rehabilitation Camp at Thottanoothu in Dindigul district on September 14, 2022. photo credit: G Karthikeyan
Speaking at the event, Collector S. Wiskan said 70 families living in the camps were finally going to live in concrete houses after more than 30 years. Residents of the camps in Thottanuthu, Adiyanuthu and Gopalapatti villages will be accommodated in the integrated camp here.
a. Kalanaygi, one of the beneficiaries, said former Chief Minister Karunanidhi had been gracious enough to allot thatched-roof houses in Adiyanuthu village when he (inmates from three camps) in Tamil Nadu after fleeing his homeland in 1990 had sought asylum.
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“Eventually, it became difficult to live in them during summer and monsoon. We had petitioned to fulfill our dream of living in better condition for our homes. Now with the steps taken by the Chief Minister, our new camp not only has pucca houses, but also has facilities like Anganwadi and library.
District Revenue Officer V. Lata, Additional Collector C. Dinesh Kumar were present.