Slum dwellers: Make "arrangements" before removing us

Slum dwellers of Anna Nagar in Delhi have said life would be really difficult for them if their houses, which they built after the Aam Aadmi Party government gave them a go-ahead to do so, are demolished without any alternate arrangements by the government.

New Delhi: Thousands of people living in slums, which are placed along the 140 km railway tracks in the city-state, are unsure of their future even if the central government have informed the Supreme Court that they would not be removed till a final decision is taken after consultation with the Railways, the Delhi Government and the Urban Development Ministry.

Interacting with ETV Bharat here some of the slum dwellers of Anna Nagar said life would be really difficult for them in case their houses, which they built after the Aam Aadmi Party government gave them a go-ahead to do so, are demolished without any arrangements.

"We have been living here for over 40 years. No Congress government asked us to build 'pakka' houses even if they provided water and electricity but we built our houses after the AAP declared that we could build our houses on the land," said Silvia, who is from Tamil Nadu and settled here after her marriage.

"...even, we don't want to live here, '' she said, adding that "let the government provide us with a good place and we will move but we should not be removed before proper arrangements are made for us."

Similar views were expressed by one Sumit, who says he was born and brought up in the same colony. He said government notice has been served to people living here for generations and it seems the locality would be demolished as has been done in parts of Uttar Pradesh.

"It would be good if the government shifts us to some other place but if our houses are demolished without any arrangements then it could be a problem for us," Sumit, a young man who works in the central Delhi, said.

On August 31, the Supreme Court had directed that the slum dwellings along the railway tracks will be removed in a phased manner.