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Old-age home in Chennai alleges harassment, eviction pressure by civic officials

CHENNAI: An old-age home, mainly offering care to those abandoned by their families, run by Little Drops Public Charitable Trust for the past 33 years in Koluthuvancheri, under the Iyyappanthangal village panchayat, has accused local officials of sustained harassment and pressure to evict them. They said that the move was to demolish a portion of its building, allegedly to aid a private apartment located nearby. The home has around 350 elderly residents, including around 100 who are bedridden, many of whom living there for several years. According to the trust, MSME Minister TM Anbarasan visited the site on November 14 and stressed the need for building the canal. In an e-mail complaint to the Chief Ministers Cell, the trust alleged that the minister told them to shift the old-age home elsewhere. In letters sent to the Kancheepuram collector, Padappai block development officer, Kundrathur tahsildar, Social Welfare Department, State Human Rights Commission, the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority, and and local police, the trust alleged that the panchayats actions were arbitrary, illegal, and aimed at crippling their service. Residents and staff told TNIE on condition of anonymity that an apartment complex with around 10 units was built a few years ago near the home. Alleging violations in the construction, they said the builder had extended a vehicle ramp and septic tank onto the road. Unable to manage sewage due to the absence of a proper drainage line, the builder allegedly attempted to construct a drainage channel in the name of a stormwater canal, to direct the outflow into a canal located behind the premises of the elderly care home. This, the trust said, would require demolition of a portion of the home. Officials from the Iyyappanthangal panchayat have been pressurising the trust to surrender part of its patta land, staff alleged. They claimed the panchayat insisted the drainage line must pass through the homes premises for the welfare of the residents of a street. The home said the canal could instead be routed via a nearby street without affecting any buildings. They also alleged the proposed canal would function as a sewage line, as the street lacks a dedicated drainage system. Repeated attempts by TNIE to reach Iyyappanthangal panchayat president Jemila Pandurengan and the Kanchipuram collector for a comment were unsuccessful.