20 'homeless' families in Sringeri 'shelter-less' now

 The Forest Department staff evicted over 20 homeless families that were residing in small huts built in Ginigini in the outskirts of the town, on Wednesday night.

The homeless were residing in the place with the oral permission from Vidyaranyapura Gram Panchayat, even as the Gram Panchayat was undertaking the process of acquiring the same forest land to provide sites to the siteless. The Forest Department had silently approved for the GP’s idea initially and had not evicted the huts.

But, now the Department has sprung into action all of a sudden by giving a shock to the poor families who were dreaming of building their houses in the land after the monsoon.
Since the Forest Department had not caused any problems while the huts were constructed, the residents suspected the hands of miscreants in the eviction drive and filed a complaint in the nearby police station on Thursday.

However, the enquiry revealed that the Forest Department had carried out the eviction drive.

Sharing the grievance with Deccan Herald, one of the shelterless said that they are all daily wage labourers and they have been living in the houses on rent in the village since 20 years.

 “Despite having submitted several applications asking for sites in the last few years, we were not given the sites. When the Gram Panchayat levelled the land behind the Forest Department’s office by spending Rs 2 lakh, we sought permission of the GP and constructed small shed like structures using our little savings. But now the Forest Department has destroyed our sheds.

We don’t have any place to go,” said a resident.It is said that the Forest Department has evicted the huts due to some legal problems in handing over the Gomala land to the GP.