Headache for Railways
Residents of a colony along the Nilgiri Mountain Rail line at Mettupalayam, 40 km north of the city, are demanding alternative house sites to vacate the lands belonging to the Railways. An all-party meeting was held at Mettupalayam on Sunday in support of the residents who have been accused of encroaching the lands, across the Mahadevapuram Road that separates the railway line from the colony. Legislator from Mettupalayam O.K. Chinnaraj and former Municipal Chairman A. Venugopal were among those who took part in the meeting.Mettupalayam Municipality sources admitted on Monday that the colony, stretching from the Nellithurai Road railway gate to Kattoor Road gate, was an encroachment. The sources said that some houses had been provided water connections and even assessed for property tax. But, this could not prevent any Government department from reclaiming its lands from encroachers. It was also said that the residents indicated their willingness to shift out, but only if they had alternative sites to build houses.
Sources in the Southern Railway said that the process of evicting the encroachers was on for the last three years. The settlers on the railway land had been given enough time to vacate. The issue had been taken up with the district administration to facilitate the re-claiming of the land. It might be resolved soon, they said.
