Residing in a rented house in one of the congested areas in the city, for N Rajasekar it was a dream to own a house in a peaceful environment. Saving every single penny he could, he began the search for his dream house about 13 years ago. He finally found a house in a gated community near Singanallur which his family loved at first sight.“The house was very expensive and my savings did not even cover half its cost. But I decided to go for it because my family loved it. With several peacocks sighted around, plenty of vegetation and with no noise pollution, it was indeed a dream house,” he said.“Just like everyone around, we checked the DTCP plan approval and enquired about the promoter and land. We were satisfied as everyone gave a positive reply,” he said. “Apart from the cost for the building, money was taken for laying internal roads, for drinking water supply, sewer lines, street lights, for maintenance work and we have been paying several thousand rupees every month,” he said.“Even though most of my earnings went as repayment for the housing loan, we were happy. But the happiness was short lived,” he said. Within a few months of moving into their dream house, they received a notice from the Public Works Department (PWD) stating that the buildings had been constructed over a water channel.“I know it is illegal to encroach and construct over a water channel, but I did not know that a water channel passed in between the houses. It was nowhere mentioned in the plan approvals or by the promoters,” he said. By then, Rajasekar had paid the entire amount which came to more than Rs 1 crore and registrations had been made in his name. Rajasekar, the bread winner of the family, is 48 years old, now and has loans to be paid till his retirement age.After the encroachments were removed, came the next shock that the buildings were not constructed as per the approved plan and there were multiple deviations. Besides, the roads should be made public as there was no other access to the plots behind the gated compound, he says.“One of the reasons I brought this house is that it is not just secured with private watchmen, but also to make my children socialise with their age group. If we have to compromise on the security aspect by making it public, then I would have got some house at a more affordable price,” he said.Citing the deviation from the approved plan, the Local Planning Authority (LPA) has cancelled its plan approval. Following this, the civic body cancelled its building license and directed the residents to demolish the buildings.“What will I do, if the house is demolished? Where will we all go? I didn't deviate from the plan or construct on the water channel. I am paying for the mistake of the promoters. Not just the house, our dream and happiness have vanished,” he said.City-based activists say that it is not just the story of a single family but also the story of most middle class families who opt for gated communities. The buyers are punished for the mistakes of promoters and builders.“Awareness among the public is extremely low when it comes to building norms and most of the times they pay for the wrongdoings of promoters. There is no concept called gated community as per the act,” said K Kathirmathiyon from Coimbatore Consumer Cause.No road or OSR land can be legally acquired by residents and it is always with the local body, he said. Roads passing through the community should always be connected with other roads for the use of occupants in adjacent plots of land.Most of the times, the promoters duplicate plan approvals and deviate from the original plan. It was not found, mostly, not just by the buyers but also by the concerned officials, asThe department does not even give approval for certain buildings, he said, hinting that they are several buildings and layouts which still do not have approvals.

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