(Top) Vacant flats at the Nonadanga estate and (above) encroachers on the banks of a canal off the EM Bypass. Pictures by Sanjoy Chattopadhyaya

More than 450 families living in shanties along canals off the EM Bypass have refused to shift to the Rs 24-crore housing estate that the civic body has built for them at Nonadanga.

Civic officials said they had requested the families more than 10 times over the past four months to shift to the flats. The encroachers refused, citing a variety of reasons — from the distance of the estate from their workplace to inadequate size of the flats.

Some of them have formed a committee opposing their eviction.

“The Calcutta Municipal Corporation (CMC) has duped us. Officials had promised to rehabilitate us within 2.5km of our current residence but have not done so,” said Sunil Mondal, the president of the Brihattaro Kolkatar Khalpar Basti Ucched Pratirodh Committee.

“I have a shop in Joramandir in Santoshpur. How will I run it from Nonadanga, which is more than 5km away?” asked another resident.

Civic officials said they could not find land for the estate closer to Rajdanga, Garfa, Survey Park, Jamunanagar and Uttar Kalikapur in wards 106, 107 and 109, from where the settlers have refused to shift.

Each family has to pay Rs 5,000 for a 190sq ft flat, built at a cost of about Rs 1.2 lakh. A flat contains a living room, a bathroom and a balcony.

“This is a great deal for shanty dwellers since it allows them to shift from unhygienic conditions under which they are living,” said a civic official.

More than 125 families have taken possession of their flats but have stayed put on the banks of Suti and other canals.

The CMC had taken up the project — under the Basic Services for Urban Poor scheme — to relocate 2,341 settler families so that the canals could be maintained better. “Only 1,886 families have moved to their flats,” said an official.

“The cleaning of the canals can only start after those residing on the banks are removed,” added the official.

Dredging of the canals is important to prevent waterlogging during monsoon.

According to civic and local sources, politicians in the three wards have bolstered the resistance of the encroachers in a bid to secure their votes in upcoming municipal elections.

The councillors of the three wards had met the mayor and senior project officials to work out a solution. “But the councillors did not pay much heed to the mayor’s request,” said a source.

Dipu Das Thakur, the Trinamul councillor of ward 106, denied knowledge of anyone in the area not leaving the canal banks. “I think all of them have moved to Nonadanga. I am not going to support those who did not,” said Thakur.

Mukul Guha Thakurta, the councillor of ward 107, echoed his party colleague.

Samarendra Roy, the CPM councillor of ward 109, said there were no encroachers in his ward. “They will be handed over the deeds of their land very soon. They are not encroachers,” he told Metro.

Mayor Bikash Ranjan Bhattacharyya insisted that the encroachers would have to shift. “The slum dwellers have to vacate the banks of the canals. Their new homes are ready at Nonadanga. If required we will take strict action to shift them,” he said.