Policy gap fails Chennai's resettlement drives: IRCDUC

CHENNAI: Most of the over 2.5 lakh people, moved out of Chennai since the 1990s are left behind a trail of broken promises, says a new report by the Information and Resource Centre for the Deprived Urban Communities (IRCDUC).

From being stranded in flood-prone, ill-connected housing blocks to children pushed out of schools, the report highlights how the lack of a comprehensive policy for rehabilitating the urban poor has deepened vulnerabilities for those displaced.

Stating that from January 2022 to December 2024, around 2,600 families in Chennai were evicted, the report, 'Revisiting Urban Resettlement and Rehabilitation in Tamil Nadu', scrutinises the gaps in planning and governance, especially in Chennai, where resettlement sites like Perumbakkam, Kannagi Nagar, and Semmenchery continue to face critical infrastructure deficits years after families were relocated there.

According to the report, only five of the 95 evicted settlements in Chennai between 2015 and 2025 underwent a Social Impact Assessment (SIA). These assessments and engagements are key to ensuring families' needs are accounted for. The report also states that over 88% of the evictions in Chennai were carried out in the middle of an academic year.

In Ezhil Nagar, IRCDUC found 99 children out of school as of early 2025, with many lacking documents needed for enrolment. In Perumbakkam, half of the surveyed students travel over 5 km to school; some commute more than 25 km daily.

Despite Chief Minister MK Stalin’s 2022 announcement of a comprehensive resettlement policy, what emerged in 2023 was a framework limited in scope and lacking legal enforceability. It applies only to the Tamil Nadu Urban Habitat Development Board (TNUHDB), omitting other key departments and court-driven evictions.

"The government said they would rescue us from a flood-prone area and sent us to an eight-storey apartment. But what happened there? The water will not drain for 10 days there. We get cut off from electricity and water. Eight years later, we are still fighting for a 24-hour hospital and proper schools in our locality. This is the reality of relocation," said Mercy, who was among those evicted from Greams Road in 2017 and resettled in Perumbakkam.

Speaking at an event to release the report, IRCDUC founder Vanessa Peter said the State must revisit the current framework. “To ensure social justice and eliminate discrimination in rehabilitation, the government must prioritise in situ or proximate housing, pre-eviction assessments, and ensuring uniform entitlements.”

The report also notes that 9,724 families were evicted between January 2022 and December 2024 across Tamil Nadu. And, currently, 53,465 families across eight districts remain under threat of eviction.