They had lived several years in conditions totally unfit for human habitation with every monsoon posing a serious threat. But the former residents of Alakkukuzhi colony, who used to call the ghetto opposite Kollam railway station their home, are a happy lot today.
The 20 families now live in a neat housing complex at Kachikadavu in Mundakkal division, a model rehabilitation project completed by Kollam Corporation as part of LIFE Mission.
And it was smiling faces who welcomed the 25 students who visited them on Saturday in connection with the LIFE Tour programme jointly organised by District Information Office and the Quilon city chapter of Junior Chamber International.
The residents shared their experiences with the students selected from various colleges, giving them a complete idea of how LIFE Mission changed their lives.
Aswathy, a student from Nehru Arts And Science College, Coimbatore, said interacting with the residents provided a more rewarding experience than reading about the project and its beneficiaries. Alakkukuzhi rehabilitation project was launched in 2019 and the total cost of the project is ₹1.7 crore.
Three cents
The housing complex at Kachikadavu has been constructed on 1.5 acres of land divided into plots of three cents.
Each house in the complex has two bed rooms, kitchen, hall, veranda and common toilet.
The construction of the project was outsourced to Phoenix, the 32-member Kudumbashree unit from Kottamkara panchayat, sources said.
It was the first big project of the all-women construction unit and it took them 1,600 working days to complete the project.
They started the project on 1 January 2018 and completed it three months before the deadline, garnering the appreciation of everyone including Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan for finishing it in a time-bound manner.
“A government system that provides land and housing, a dream for most commoners, is highly appreciable,” said Muhlis, a student of Noorul Islam College, Kumaracoil, Kanyakumari.