Coimbatore: Continuing its drive against encroachments near waterbodies , the slum clearance board evicted 262 families from a slum along a canal near Podanur on Thursday.This is the second eviction carried out by the board this year after 630 houses near the Ukkadam Lake were removed last week. The eviction was carried out following a Supreme Court order directing civic bodies to remove encroachments along waterbodies.About two months ago, the slum clearance board had marked the houses near Athupalam area that had encroached the canal in the area. On Thursday, all the houses were razed down using bulldozers. The buildings also included a place of worship.The slum clearance board had provided alternative houses for the residents in Vellalore. "We issued tokens to all the families and allocated houses in Vellalore," said a slum clearance board official.The plan was to allocate houses for the families in Arivoli Nagar. "But, then we conducted discussions with the officials and demanded to be shifted to Vellalore," said one of the residents.All families had vacated their houses expect one. Gouri, a former councillor of ward 95, chose not to leave the house, as she did not want the money she spent on laying tiles and designing the house to go waste. "Only backyard of the house is an encroachment. The slum clearance board can remove that and leave me to stay in the remaining part of the house," she said.She was not heeding to the officials demand and it took nearly half an hour for them to console her. "We have given her time till today evening to vacate the place. Otherwise, corporation officials will bring the house down," an official of the Slum Clearance Board said.

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