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Amritapuram: Housing Development Project in Panagudi

Panagudi, Kanyakumari, Tamil Nadu: A little to the north of Kanyakumari lies the mountain of Mahendragiri. It is a beautiful, flat topped mass towering over a wide plain. The mountain is a sacred place, renowned as the spot where Hanuman placed his foot when he jumped over to Lanka.

In the shadow of Mahendragiri lies a tiny two-and-half-acre site developed for housing under the Amrita Kuteeram project. The new residents come from villages and towns all over the region, where they had been living in overcrowded conditions or in dilapidated huts, and generally had to pay exorbitant rents.

The Amritakuteeram homes, although small, are spacious compared with the people's previous houses. The houses are given free, so the burdens of rent and rent arrears is removed. And in contrast to the old huts, the Kuteeram houses withstand the extremes of climate; they are made of hollow concrete blocks, made by the ashram, which are stronger and cheaper than commercial types.

Panagudi, Tamil Nadu

In the State of Kerala, where the Amritakuteeram project has built the most number of houses to date, almost all the recipients owned the land on which their houses were built. In fact, the local government provides a 1.5 cent plot of land (60 square meters) to all who do not own any land. But in other Indian states, as in the neighbouring Tamil Nadu, no such government program exists and many poor people do not own any land. Therefore, in those areas, both the house and the land had to be provided. Towards this end a devotee donated 2.5 acres of land in Panagudi, a village close to Kanyakumari (Cape Comorin), in the Tirunalveli district of Tamil Nadu.

The Colony

Following Amma's instructions to make the best use of this area, four brahmacharis undertook the task of building a colony of houses on this land. They participated actively with workers and volunteers in the construction work, and the results have been impressive. In beautiful natural surroundings, with direct access to a main road, now lies the small village of Amritapuram, consisting of 60 new small houses. The houses are plotted in an orderly way, interconnected by a network of nice walkways and roads. Each house has 2 rooms, some with an additional veranda at the entrance. Electricity and water installations have been provided. Common toilets and showers are housed in separate buildings. A big hall has also been provided to the residents for hosting various social and spiritual programmes.

Community meetings

Left: A community hall provides space for the neighbours to meet. It is also used for daily worship. The first public puja was attended by two hundred relatives and friends from the nearby village, making the new estate feel very much like home. It is planned to hold these celebrations every month.

A Decent Life: Dignity and Hope:

The Amritapuram village residents continue to live very simple lives. The women cook outside their houses on wood fuelled, earthen stoves. They fetch water from the site's communal tank. They wash in the communal bathhouse. There are a few street lights but no electricity in the homes. At night, like country dwellers everywhere in India, the people light kerosene lamps. Lacking other means of transport they generally walk to wherever they want to go; to the nearby shop for buying provisions and to their work places.

The Amrita Kuteeram Village projects give people a chance to lead a decent communal life. They bring dignity and hope. Amma is prepared to continue supporting the people in their efforts to improve their conditions.