Corpn removes houses from Krishnampathy lake bund

Coimbatore: The city corporation on Monday resumed its encroachment eviction drive along Krishnampathy lake and demolished 68 houses on the bund to enable the lake rejuvenation and beautification project.
The civic body had removed 97 houses on Ajay Mukerjee Street and 76 on Gokulam Colony along the lake, a corporation official said. “On Monday, we demolished 68 houses on Ex-serviceman Colony along the eastern side of the lake. We have to remove 140 houses and five small temples on Om Sakthi Nagar on the other side.”
The Tamil Nadu slum clearance board (TNSCB) has provided alternative accommodation to all families residing along the lake at the housing unit in Thiru Vi Ka Nagar at Kovaipudur. As many as 256 families in the locality have been allotted 400sqft flats, the cost of which was borne by the Smart Cities Mission.
The lake rejuvenation and beautification project is implemented at a cost of Rs 19.36 crore along Krishnampathy lake. As part of beautification work, cycle tracks, walker’s plaza and other recreational infrastructure would be developed around the lake. The civic body also plans to set up water treatment plants to treat sewage water before letting it into the lake.
The corporation plans to remove encroachments along Kurichi lake soon, the official added.
Meanwhile, the corporation demolished 17 houses built illegally on corporation lands at Sunnambu Kalvi near PN Pudur and 20 at Linganur near Vadavalli on Monday. The residents have been provided accommodation at TNSCB flats at Thiru Vi Ka Nagar.