Tue Jan 21 14:48:44 UTC 2025: **Tiruvannamalai Landslide Victims Protest House Enumeration**
TIRUVANNAMALAI, January 21, 2025 – Families displaced by a December 1 landslide in Tiruvannamalai’s Arunachala Hills staged a protest on Tuesday, blocking a major road to oppose a government plan to enumerate houses in the area. The enumeration is part of a relocation effort following the landslide that claimed seven lives.
Protestors, many of whom are involved in temple-related work, fear the enumeration will precede forced evictions without adequate alternative housing. K. Santhosh, a sculptor, stated that many of the asbestos-roofed homes have been in the hills for decades and that eviction would severely impact their livelihoods.
While the district administration has provided temporary housing to some displaced families, including metal-roofed homes to 20 families on Monday, residents claim this is insufficient and that the government intends to remove them from the hills without providing suitable replacements in town.
Revenue officials have identified approximately 1,535 houses in the hills, many built on a reserve forest area. Following the protest, around 60 residents were arrested, and cases were registered against them. Traffic was disrupted for over two hours before being restored. The situation remains tense as displaced families continue to demand a halt to the house enumeration.
First Piper 