Chief Minister M.K. Stalin will virtually open 88 free houses for Sri Lankan Tamils at Minnur village near Ambur town in Tirupattur by the end of January. These homes are meant for people living in rehabilitation camps since the early 1990s in poor conditions. Officials from the District Rural Development Agency (DRDA) said these Tamils lived in small, old single-room houses with very few facilities. There are two camps in Tirupattur district: Minnur and Chinnapallikuppam. "In Tirupattur district, Sri Lankan Tamils were living in camps at Minnur and Chinnapallikuppam near Ambur. The new houses will be given to those living in Chinnapallikuppam by next week (January)," said S. Poongodi, the Tasildar for Sri Lankan Tamils (Tirupattur). This follows an incident on January 21 where 18 new houses meant for Chinnapallikuppam Tamil residents were illegally occupied. A police case is underway. Resident S. Raja urged the district administration to hand over the houses without delay, saying the houses are ready but remain locked. K. Collector Sivasoundaravalli and DRDA officials will soon inspect the new houses in Minnur village. The project is in two parts. Phase 1, completed in 2023, provided 160 free houses. The remaining 88 homes will be given by January end. Officials say delay was due to scheduling the inauguration with dignitaries. Each house costs around ₹8.10 lakh to the State. They cover 291 sq.ft. and include a living room, bedroom, attached washroom, and kitchen. They also have free water and power connections. The camp includes a community center, children’s common center, fair price shop, public library, workshop for free vocational training, and overhead water tanks. The roads leading to the camps will be re-laid. The Chief Minister launched this initiative in November 2021 in Vellore. Tiruvannamalai district has 11 camps housing 3,196 persons. Vellore, Tirupattur, and Ranipet have two camps each. Since 1990, 2,239 families live in these camps across these districts.