The Human Rights Forum (HRF) has opposed the opacity of the South Central Railway (SCR) in going ahead with the expansion of the Cherlapally railway station and demanded that the residents in the proximity be given information how the expansion would affect them, a statement said.
A team from the HRF, led by coordination committee member for Andhra Pradesh and Telangana S. Jeevan Kumar, conducted a fact-finding exercise in Bharat Nagar and Mahalakshmi Nagar areas of Cherlapally and learnt that the residents did not know anything about the expansion.
However, two women—P. Balanarsamma and I. Padma of Bharat Nagar—have been asked by the railway officials to vacate the homes. Both the women constructed the houses after procuring the plots through a purchase agreement by notary. They expressed helplessness after the SCR officials refused to give them any compensation citing that the homes were built on railway land.
On the northern side of the station, road expansion is being planned from Mahalakshmi Nagar to the main road. For this, houses on both sides have been marked, and owners of 14 houses and five plots have been given notices to vacate. Here, too, the residents have not been included in the process, colony residents said.
Though the expansion has been under way for the past seven years, building permissions were given during the past five years, and house numbers have been allotted, the statement said. All the house owners had availed loans, and the documents of the houses are still with the banks.
There is a 100 feet road from the now defunct HCL factory, apart from three other roads of 30-40 feet width, any of which can be used/expanded as an approach road for the station instead of displacing the residents, the statement said attributing it to the colony residents.
The forum demanded reconstruction of houses for those being displaced in Bharat Nagar and a public consultation meeting with the Mahalakshmi Nagar residents.
