Five years on, Chennai yet to get Amma Hostel for working women

In the 2014-2015 budget, former Chennai Mayor Saidai S Duraisamy had promised to build Amma Hostels for working women in various parts of the city. Even after five years, the civic body failed to get the Centre’s sanction for the project.

Speaking to DT Next, Duraisamy said that the project was announced to ensure safety of the women who stay here for job and education purposes. “Our idea was to provide safe accommodation to women at a lower cost. For the men and women who visit Chennai for temporary purposes such as interview, separate temporary hostels were also proposed. However, these projects are stalled,” he said, urging the Corporation to take up the project.

It is learnt that the Corporation officials identified a 4-acre land on Avadanam Papaiya Street in Choolai to build the first Corporation-run working women hostel. When contacted, a Corporation official said the civic body had sent a proposal to the Social Welfare Department of Tamil Nadu for funds a year ago. 

“As the Centre has to provide around 70 per cent grant for the project, the department sent a proposal to the Union Government. Till now, there is no response from the government,” he added.

Meanwhile, the former mayor Duraisamy added that during his tenure, the Corporation had taken steps to regulate private women’s hostel and property tax was 

also increased. 

“We conducted a detailed review of the private hostels about the owners’ profile and the safety arrangements they provided. These actions should continue,” Duraisamy said. On the other hand, women right activists demand the better standards in working women hostels as well as for hostels in educational institutions. 

“Be it government or private hostels, we need better standards and regulations,” said Swarna Rajagopalan, managing trustee of Prajnya Trust.

M Vishnupriya from Krishnagiri, who visited Chennai recently for a competitive exam, said that she had to spend more for a better stay and always worried about the safety.