The Odisha Basti Sangharsa Samiti, a body fighting for the rights of slum dwellers, has strongly opposed the State Government’s decision to demolish 24 slums in the city for the Smart City mission.
At a Press meet on Thursday, Samiti president Pratap Sahu said the demolition would affect 10,000 families while around 50,000 people would lose their livelihoods due to demolition. The Government has made arrangements to hand over the lands to corporate houses after the demolition, he maintained.
The body demanded inclusion of the slum dwellers in the Smart City vision. “A Smart City cannot be envisaged by eliminating slum dwellers, who have enough contributions in the lavish lifestyle maintained by urban people. Hence, proper rehabilitation and other basic facilities, including land and guarantee of sources of livelihood, should be ensured to them first,” said Sahu.
The body also launched a toll-free helpline number-09810567224 to extend help to Smart City-affected slum dwellers. It also threatened to launch agitation in coming days if the Government does not rehabilitate the slum dwellers before demolishing slums and roadside vendors for the Smart City, said RTI activist Pradip Pradhan.