HYDERABAD: The apathy of Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) and revenue officials has put additional burden on several beneficiaries of 2BHK project, which was launched in 2015. The snail-paced progress has been so pathetic that people from 38 slums are being forced to pay rents having shifted to accommodations in other areas.
Over a span of five years, the corporation has constructed double bedroom houses in only 27 slums out of 38 locations. According to a GHMC official, people residing in slums, who agree to vacate and live in 2BHK houses in the same area, are taken into consideration.
The official added “Only slums where they voluntarily vacate are taken up. We never make any forcible evacuations.” Most slums in the city do not even have land patta documents as they built their houses by occupying a part of land in the slum area. “There are 2,000 houses in M.S Maktha slum. Of them only around 200 houses have patta documents,” said the Maktha slum president, Shaik Shareef. Most of them have been built by the residents and not by the GHMC.
“Nobody in the slum is even aware of the 2BHK scheme,” he added. Some from a slum in BJR Nagar allege that TRS leaders knock on their doors for votes and assure 2 BHK houses for each family. Nothing has transpired thereafter. Jaben Begum, who lives in BJR Nagar slum, said that 2BHK houses have been built for those from Bharat Nagar slum, which is in the neighborhood.
“There are many vacant houses in that building. Why are we not given a house there?” she wondered. A foundation stone was also laid at the Hamali Basti slum for the construction of 2BHK houses five years back. However, it remains a non-starter, said some residents of the slum.
