JC holds meeting with fishermen over police station construction

JC Sudhakar has promised to explore all options before finalising the spot for the police station, said K Bharathi of South Indian Fishermen Welfare Association. When contacted, the police officer said that he had a meeting with the representatives of the fishermen from Nochikuppam. “I also am planning to visit the hamlet and hoping to sort out the issue soon,” he said.

The Police department has been pressing for a new building for the D5 Marina police station on four grounds of land in Nochikuppam fishing hamlet for more than a year now while fishermen have been opposing the move.

The fishermen had also said that they would start a signature campaign against the construction stating they believe that there was no need for a police station as they don’t even have space for basic facilities in the hamlet.

Police department has claimed that the land was allotted for the construction of the police station by the Slum Clearance Board.

Fishermen, however, claimed that the land traditionally belonged to their community. They are also questioning the decision of the Slum Clearance Board to hand over the land to the police. Mylai Nochikuppam Meenava Grama Sabai has already approached the Slum Clearance Board and the Chennai Collector to reverse the decision.