Floating on the froth
Chennai: After celebrating the previous night singing Christmas carols and sharing plum cakes, the residents of Nochikuppam woke up to an undreamed reality fourteen years back. The searing ocean, their god and livelihood, flattened the shoreline on calm Sunday morning. Years later the residents are still reeling under its affect.
A cluster of houses painted in light green and pink close by the iconic Madras Lighthouse and the Foreshore Estate Promenade is Nochi Nagar built by the Tamilnadu Slum Clearance Board for the fishermen community which majorly populates the area.
Situated along the Bay of Bengal, these settlements were built following the Tsunami in 2004. However, few other families which could not be accommodated in these houses were allowed to stay in temporary settlements in the nearby Nochikuppam, with nothing more than corrugated iron for the roofs and the promise to be resettled in houses by 2007.
“The government had initially managed to construct 628 flats out of which many were awarded to the ones who were close to various politicians while the rest of us continued to live in temporary settlements in Nochikuppam” says Bala a fisherman, who earlier occupied one of the many temporary settlements.
These temporary settlements in Nochikuppam were built for only a period of 12 months initially with the promise of proper houses in the same locality by 2007. These shelters occupied by more than 1000 families, were small 5X10 feet identical shelters with no room for sanitation forcing people to use the two poorly maintained public toilets. Bala added “Many families demarcated bathing spaces within these small shelters with bricks as no such provision was available in the public toilets. Also we had to wash clothes right outside the houses which led to water clogging as there was no proper drainage system further congesting the area.”
These temporary settlements were poorly affected during the 2015 floods and cyclone Vardah with the temporary iron and asbestos roofs which were damaged. “We pulled advertisement sheets or political party hoardings to cover the holes” said Karthik, a construction worker who lived in one of the temporary shelters.
However, these temporary settlements were razed earlier this year in August with as many as 150 families which were left out without any allocations in the nearby Nochi Nagar. Navanetham, one such fisherwoman who was not provided any alternative accommodation lives in a small temporary shelter made of asbestos sheets on the shore. “My livelihood depends on the sea and I cannot move away from here as my children study in the Santhome Higher Secondary School.” She has to live in the fear of the policemen and other government officials who visit often to collect bribe to let her stay on the shore.
Electricity and water supply to these temporary settlements were cut off in late July this year since the commencement of demolition which made the public toilets inaccessible, leaving the people with no other option but to defecate in open. “After living in such poor conditions for years with hollow promises, we were pushed to this extent. It was very tough for us women, but we had no other option” adds Navaneetham.
While very few families live on the shore, the others who were left with no accommodation live in the large parking space on the ground floor of every housing complex in Nochi Nagar. Shanmugam, who works as a painter, says “Staying in the ground floor which is actually meant for parking is difficult task, as the residents quarrel frequently over this issue. Also our children are forced to sleep in the open. They tend to fall sick especially during monsoon because of mosquitoes.” He also pointed out that garbage is not quite frequently collected by the corporation and during monsoons the situation worsens with garbage piling over for more than a week. The lack of proper garbage disposal system and clogged sewage lines makes them prone to health issues.
Shanmugam added that many others like him protested against the government demanding temporary shelters until they were allotted houses in Nochi Nagar. However, the authorities of the Tamilnadu slum clearance board offered them new homes in Perumbakkam, 20 kms away from Nochikuppam. Sakthikumar, a fisherman who also participated in the protests said “Our livelihood depends on the sea and we have been doing this for generations. We can neither travel daily from Perumbakkam to here nor can we choose other occupation as we don’t know anything else. It will also become difficult for our children who study in government schools here.”
Most of the children from Nochikuppam and Nochi Nagar are enrolled in Santhome Higher secondary school. Various NGOs teach English and Maths for these children during weekends and summer holidays.
Shilpa, a volunteer from the NGO Child Rights and You (CRY) said that the children are taught arts and crafts during weekends. The organisation also organises admission drives for these children as most of them tend to dropout. She says “Many children help their parents in fishing or work as child labours selling sundals and other eateries in the marina beach to support their parents financially. Our organisation identifies such children and admits them back in school.” Apart from this the organisation also focuses on empowering girl children by teaching them self-defense.
However, according to the residents the area is safe for women. Bharathi, a domestic worker residing in the locality says “Sometimes I return back late after work but that is not an issue with bright streetlights and frequent police patrolling. The police patrolling at night has made the are safer for women.” This is also one of the reasons why people prefer to stay here than move to any other settlement in the city where crime rates are rather high. Though Nochikuppam is quite a safe place for its residents with low crime rates, the residents are plagued by various other issues.
With the wounds still unhealed and losses still mourned, the riders of the sea hope cement and steel can shield their lives.
