The Fisheries Department has bought land for 142 beneficiaries in the district as part of its housing project for fish workers with their own land or home. A total of 320 beneficiaries were identified by a selection committee in the district last year. On Saturday, the department distributed land to 23 beneficiaries in Pozhiyur area.
The department is currently executing three separate housing projects for fish workers — one for those without own land and home, another for those who have lost their homes to sea erosion and another one for those living within 50 metres of the sea.
“The department is giving ₹10 lakh to each beneficiary, as part of the project for those without own land and home. Out of this, ₹6 lakh will be used to buy land and ₹4 lakh for house construction. The maximum area of land that can be bought is 3 cents, while minimum is 2 cents. The beneficiaries themselves identify the land and approach the department. A land purchase committee, with the District Collector as chairman, carries out an assessment of the suitability of the land and approves the purchase,” says M. Salim, Deputy Director (South Zone) of the Fisheries Department.
In the district, 4,000 applications were received for the particular scheme, out of which 320 were finally selected. At Pozhiyur, the 23 applicants together identified a 62-cent plot. The department, after buying the land, drew lots on Saturday in the presence of people’s representatives and the beneficiaries, to allocate the land, as there was a demand for plots close to the road. The lands are usually identified at a short distance from the sea, so that the livelihood of the fish workers are not affected.
For the housing project for those who have lost their homes in sea erosion, 185 beneficiaries have been identified in the district, out of which the works for 90 have already begun. The department has also bought 2.5 acres of land to build apartments for those who are currently residing within 50 metres of the sea. The estimate of the number of beneficiaries in this scheme is currently being prepared.
