KUALA LUMPUR: The living conditions of the residents of Kampung Railway in Sentul are almost "slave-like". This is the conclusion of Deputy Federal Territories and Urban Wellbeing Minister Datuk M. Saravanan, who visited the settlement this morning.

"I'm shocked to see that there is still such a living environment in the middle of the city. The residents do not have proper shelter, water supply or electricity. The place doesn't look like a village... it is more of a dumpsite!"

Saravanan spent about an hour in Kampung Railway, during which he entered the dwellings of several families, spoke with them and even checked out the condition of their toilets.

He was accompanied by several officers from City Hall and members of the mass media. The minister also visited the site where 2,400 units of low-cost houses were supposed to be built by YTL Land and Development Bhd.

"If YTL agrees to build all these units, then the housing problems here can be settled, not only for Sentul residents but also for the whole of the Batu parliamentary constituency.

"As I have said earlier, my previous meeting with top management of YTL was positive," he told reporters.

However, the minister said, no date had been set for the ministry and YTL to meet to finalise the matter.

Looking at the piles of debris from houses demolished earlier surrounding the area, Saravanan said even if YTL did not want to build the low-cost units, it should at least clear the debris.

The Malay Mail reported last week that YTL had agreed to discuss the Kampung Railway land dispute with the ministry.

Saravanan had said he received a letter from YTL chairman Sulaiman Manan to discuss the matter, and implied that an amicable solution to the problem was possible.

The residents have been waiting for more than 16 years for YTL to honour its promise to build low-cost flats for them, and cried foul when the developer instead told them to leave the area.

YTL claimed it took over the project from Sentul Raya Sdn Bhd (SRSB) in 1997 and that any agreement made was solely between it and SRSB, not with the residents.

However, YTL had offered each family a housing unit in Puchong, but the residents rejected it as too far away and very inconvenient.