PositiveNewsCorner

Based on inputs by Shahid Kazi

47 families residing in Keelpoonachi tribal hamlet in Anamalai Tiger Reserve Forest have been living without electricity in tin sheet houses. A few kilometers away there were 22 families waited for homes after being displaced after being hit by a landslide.

The lives of these 69 families is setto change for the better with the chief minister’s solar-powered greenhouse scheme allotting 8,803 concrete houses to be built for tribal families. Under the project, a total of 20,000 houses will be built in this financial year.

The residents of the tribal villages are excited at the prospect of living in a solar powered house as it would mean realisation of their long awaited dream of using electricity.

After two years of data collection on tribal families without proper housing facilities from district collectors and forest officials, the department of tribal welfare submitted a proposal to build houses for as many as 8,803 tribal families. It was aimed at 100% coverage of tribal families in the state.

“We are going to cover the all tribal hamlets at one go to provide a concrete house and replace thatched huts. We are aiming to achieve the target by the end of this fiscal year” director of rural development and panchayat raj K S Palaniswamy told TOI.

The state allocated Rs 1.80 lakh towards civil work and Rs 30,000 for installation of solar panels and lightings for each unit. The tribal welfare department chips in and allocates Rs 90,000 for each beneficiary.