THOUSANDS LIVE ON PROTECTED 2,000-YEAR-OLD 'MEGALITHIC' SITES IN KANCHEEPURAM, TIRUVALLUR DISTRICTS
HERTIAGE SQUATERS FEAR OUSTER
They blame their plight on official apathy. Scores of families living on properties in Kancheepuram and Tiruvallur earmarked as protected sites by the Arachhaeological Survey of India(ASI) are living in fear, uncertain when the hammer will fall on them.
A recent amendment to the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958, not only prohibits them from making alterations or carrying out renovations to their houses located on these 2000- year-old megalithic sites, but could also ensure their eviction from the sites that could prove a rich source of historical information about an ancient culture. Residents say that Officials did little to stop construction in the area and they themselves had been ignorant about the heritage laws until a few months back.
The residents are now thronging the offices of ASI, Chennai circle, and the commissionerateof archaeology in the city with petitions. "I want to construct a house in our plot. I was told to get a no objection certificate, but I am not aware whom to approach," said S M Ajmal hussain, a resident of Kilambakkam near Urapakkam. Residents feel that with the elections round the corner,officials and politicians are maintaining a stoic silence.
Several hundreds of residents who could not afford housing in the city and had moved to the southern suburbs a decade ago and built houses with their meagre earnings are now in a state of distress," said V Santhanam, president, Federation of Civic and welfare Association of Pallavaram. People are worried that one morning they might be thrown out of their homes," he said.
In many areas,residents' welfare associations are resorting to protest programmes over what they call "official lethargy" in explaining about such a draconian law". In fact the last amendment to the act makes it clear that constructions are prohibited in these areas and the residents could well face evictions if the state decides to act. While the amendment act was notified in March this year, local body officials informed the residents in the last few months. Today, these people can neither sell their land nor build near the protected sites coming under the ASI, despite holding valid land deeds and plan permits from the local bodies CMDA.
The residents blame officials for sanctioning the building plans. We were shocked when we were informed about such a law. Oficials are to be blamed for the mess," G Murugan, a councillor of Sembakkam town panchayat, told TOI." Anyway, who is bothered about ancient burial sites? The state has to first take care
of our welfare", he said.
"The act is nothing new. We have sent repeated reminders in the past to the local bodies concerned about the illegal constructions near the protected areas.But constructions continue to take place," Sathyabhama Badreenath, superintendent archaeologist, ASI, Chennai circle, told TOI. The law was framed to ensure "right ambience" around the monuments which are centres of heritage tourism, she said.
Sembakkam sees red over ASI law
They have their cake but can't eat it. That is what at least 5000 residents of Sembakkam, a suburb near Tambaram, feel after the local body freezed the sale, construction and alteration of land and residential properties lying within sniffing distance of megalithic sites.
The residents, who invested their life-long savings in the relatively cheaper suburb a decade ago, are now staring at dead asset. N Chandrasekaran, a government employee and resident of Sembakkam, says, I purchased a property in 1990s and my whole savings went into building this house. My family is having sleepless nights after coming to know of the ban on constructions and reconstructionin my locality, which has been labelled as prohibited."
The amendment to the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act was made in 1992, pausing constructions in Sembakkam. The ASI notification says 164.47 acres in survey number 157 in Sembakkam have megalithic sites with historic heritage features buried in the ground.
The residents are seething at the official machinery for keeping them in the dark all these years or for not flagging their applications when permissions for construction were sought. "It's no fault of mine. The officials who cleared our plan permits are solely responsible for all this mess," says Chandrasekaran.
The cloud of eviction or demolition looms large over residents of Sembakkam, Samraj Nagar, V G P Pon Nagar, Balaji Avenue, M F Nagar, Tirumoorthi Nagar, Jayendra Nagar, Tharakeswari Nagar, Soundarya Nagar, Eswari Nagar, Palaniappa Nagar and Santhanammal Nagar.
According to J Sundaramurthy, a retired PWD official and a resident of Samraj Nagar, "The state can't wish away the situation when the plan sanctions were given by the local bodies and Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority".
Sundaramurthy and Chandrasekaran are among those who moved to the suburbs after the city property prices sky-rocketed in the early 90s. And a chunk among the resident are retired government employees who built houses with loan from the state government. "Does it mean, the state funding agency failed to look into the existing law that froze constructions in the protected areas" asks K Venkatasubramanian, a retired staffer of Tamil Nadu Small Industries Corporation(TANSI).
The ASI bogey has already sacred the life out of real estate industry in Sembakkam.
The town panchayat has stopped sanctioning new plan permits for constructions, reconstruction or alterations in the prohibited and regulated area.
M Venkatesan, executive officer of Sembakkam town panchayat says, "We were not aware of the existing law until a communique from the ASI, Chennai Circle intimated about the law. If there had been any reminders in the past, certainly such developments would not have taken place."
PAST HAUNTS PRESENT
What is a megalithic site?
There are 160 megalithic sites in Kancheepuram and Tiruvallur dating between 2nd century BC and 2nd century AD. Urn burials, stone circles, dolmens, cists, cairns(stone mounds) and sarcophaguses(stone coffins) are believed to be beneath the sites.
Why is it important to preserve the areas?
The sites help uncloak the socio-cultural activities of the stone age. It allows multi-disciplinary research on habitants of ancient civilisation, which thrived near hillocks and water bodies. In a joint research with Anna University, the ASI excavated urn burials last year in Kancheepuram
Why did govt allow constructions when laws to protect the sites were enacted two decades ago?
The planning and regulatory bodies of the state were unaware of the existing law
Where are these sites located?
There are 24 megalithic sites notified by the ASI on Chennai Metropolitian Area at ? Nandambakkam, Erumaiyur, Kundrathur, Nandampakkam, Sirukalathur, Sikarayapuram, Kadaperi, Tiruneermalai, Ayyanchari, Kilambakkam, Nanmangalam, Sembakkam, Nedunkundram, Ottiyambakkam, Pallavaram, Perumbakkam, Sithalapakkam and Perungalathur. Also urn burials and megalithic sites of St Thomas Mount, sarcophaguses and urns and traces of megalithic sites of Tirusoolam have been notified by the ASI
- Julie Mariappan | TNN
Related links
http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-features/tp-downtown/article809847.ece
http://www.hindu.com/2010/09/16/stories/2010091651890200.htm
http://www.deccanchronicle.com/chennai/asi-identifies-10-sites-monuments-992
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