83 families of Teegalaguda get pattas for JNNURM apartments in Mannanur

Hyderabad: 83 families of Teegalaguda slums were finally rehabilitated in the apartments built under the Jawaharlal Nehru Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM) scheme in Mannanur in Rangareddy.

A total of 230 houses in Chandraiah, Lakshmaiah and Vaddera basti were demolished on March 3rd, 2022. These people were forced to live in crowded community halls and pavements on the road.

The slumdwellers contacted the Human Rights Forum as they appealed to various multiple government offices for shelter but were not being provided the same. They had documented proof of their stay in Teegalaguda for the last 30 years. The residents of the basti claim that they were being threatened with demolition often but finally in March 2022, the demolition was carried out and they were left on the road.

Syed Bilal of Human Rights Forum, an organisation that worked for the speedy rehabilitation of the Teegalaguda slum dwellers, says that these families' struggles started around 30 years ago. "The government has been trying to evict these people, who were born here, whose parents were born here, from Teegalaguda for 30 years. In March, the evictions were carried out in a very bad manner. Their things were thrown out of the house and they were asked to leave without any prior notice. These people who work as sanitation staff and clean the city, are they not entitled to basic rights?" he asks.

He also explains how hard the struggle was. "Many of the families who were genuine residents of Teegalaguda and had valid documents were denied housing simply because they did not have the money to bribe the officials," said Syed. He points out that once after 145 families were given pattas, the government closed the files and said 'no more pattas.' It was only after persistent efforts of activists including Medha Patkar who had visited Hyderabad in April to announce solidarity with the evicted slum dwellers of Teegalaguda, that the files were reopened and rehabilitation was reconsidered.

JNNURM apartments

Though these 83 families are happy that they found a house, they still have a lot of stumbling blocks in front of them. The families who have been rehabilitated in Mannanur say that they lack many basic amenities like water, transportation, and health services. The nearest main road to these apartments is around 2 kms away and people have to walk that far to catch a bus. If there is any health emergency, the nearest hospital is 3 kms away and also, there are no Anganwadi in the area, say residents.

30 more people left on the roads

However, there are 30 more people left in Teegalaguda who haven't got their pattas approved and continue to stay on the roads. "All of them have submitted valid documents and their names are on the list. We urge the government to provide housing to these 30 people as well who have been left behind. If the government does not take the necessary steps, we would start a movement for these 30 people and would continue it even if it is for one person," adds Syed.