Un tidy relocation
the Tamil Nadu government's effort at coastal regulation in tsunami-affected districts has taken a controversial turn. The government had ordered the relocation of houses within 500 metres of the High Tide Line (htl) and also of those between 500 metres and 1 kilometre (km) if the topography so demanded. But the recently released report of the M S Swaminathan (mss) committee on the 1991 Coastal Regulation Zone (crz) notification (part of the Environment Protection Act, 1985) suggests doing away with the very system of demarcating the htl. It suggests adopting a more distinct natural boundary instead. The report points at loopholes in the crz rules. Another grey area in the government's directive is that beach resorts, hotels and farmhouses have been kept outside its purview. Local fishing communities suspect they are being given incentives to relocate so that their land can be "grabbed' for commercial purposes.
The order The state government's directive was issued by the Revenue Department's Disaster Management and Mitigation wing. It was addressed to the collectors of 13 districts. They were asked to conduct surveys to identify houses within the 500-metre and between the 500 metre to 1 km zones. But the order made it clear that the first rehabilitation effort will cover only those living in the under 500 metre zone.
What is crucial is that while the order doesn't make shifting mandatory, it makes the prospect appealing. It almost sounds like a favour: "A preliminary discussion with the affected population