Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has reiterated that the government will not acquire the land of coastal residents who choose to relocate to safer locations under the Punargeham rehabilitation scheme.
Formally inaugurating the handing over of keys to 276 flats and 308 individual houses constructed under the programme through videoconference on Thursday, Mr. Vijayan said the government hoped that more of the 18,985 families who resided within 50 metres of high tide line would opt for the scheme. Currently, 7,716 families have registered for the scheme being undertaken by the Fisheries Department.
Why the project
Elaborating on the rationale behind the State-wide scheme, he said numerous families faced the threat of their houses being destroyed by inclement weather and high tide. As many as 403 houses were fully and 564 houses partially damaged along the coast between 2016 and 2019. The government aimed at converting such areas as buffer zones and erecting bio-fences for coastal protection.
Scheme’s provision
Under the scheme beneficiaries can avail themselves of assistance of up to ₹6 lakh to purchase plots of 2-3 cents and another instalment of ₹4 lakh for constructing houses. The government is mulling options to exempt beneficiaries from paying registration fees in advance, Mr. Vijayan said.
While the 276 flats have been developed in Karode, Beemapally and Ponnani, another set of flats is nearing completion at QSS Colony in Kollam. The 308 houses have been constructed in Thiruvananthapuram, Kollam, Alappuzha, Ernakulam, Thrissur, Malappuram, Kozhikode and Kannur.
Works on 898 housing complexes at an outlay of ₹89.8 crore are underway in various coastal districts in the State, he added. Under the project, 2,363 more beneficiaries have identified land required for constructing houses. Among them, 1,746 others have completed registration formalities. As many as 601 people have constructed houses thus far.
