Revision as of 20:31, 26 July 2013

Unsafe Buildings

‘Unsafe’ Old Delhiwallas live in fear and hope

Survey On Unsafe Buildings Pending, No Repairs This Year

Maria Akram TNN The Times of India

Every year, the corporations carry out a survey before monsoon to identify unstable structures and get them repaired. In 2012 the corporation pointed out some 160 dangerous buildings in the city.

North Delhi Municipal Corporation says the guidelines are very clear, and residents should file complaints against officials who demand money. “Repair includes patchwork, mending the ceiling, whitewash or changing the windows. But one cannot extend the height of the structure. There have been complaints of people carrying out construction in the name of repair.”

Officials say over 200 buildings in Walled City area and around 70 in Paharganj are not deemed safe but only 27 dangerous buildings have been strengthened in the past few years. Officials say most of the dangerous buildings are private properties. They claim to have issued several eviction notices but put the onus of repairs on the owner. “In 2012, 25,785 properties were surveyed in the Walled City and 47 were declared ‘very dangerous’. We issued notices but the owners are responsible for demolishing the portions. If the building is marked as ‘very dangerous’, we raze the portions and the owners are supposed to remove the remaining structure,” said a North Corporation official.

According to the figures by the National Crime Records Bureau, Delhi has experienced maximum damage by collapse of structures, falling under unnatural accidents, among 53 cities. In 2011, 68 cases of collapse were reported, claiming 60 lives and leaving 75 people injured. This raises serious questions about the capital’s readiness for vertical gr owth.

After the Lalita Park building collapse in 2010, then unified MCD, along with the National Institute of Disaster Management, conducted a large-scale survey in the trans-Yamuna area to pinpoint the unsafe buildings. The survey report was never tabled. After the collapse, action has been taken against 96 properties, say officials.

“Rampant illegal construction has not only cluttered areas but also weakened the existing structures. The walls of many houses have developed cracks and their foundation has become shaky,” said Sanjeev Sehgal, member of Ramesh Nagar RWA, east Delhi.

WITHERING HEIGHTS

Every year municipal corporations have to carry out a survey to identify dangerous buildings in the capital

1n 2012, corporations identified around 160 dangerous buildings

Officials say there are over 200 dilapidated buildings in Walled City and over 70 in Paharganj alone

Under Delhi building bylaws 1983, no alteration can be made to a residential building after the building plan is sanctioned by corporation. For any change in basic structure, a new building plan has to be submitted; otherwise it will be seen as unauthorized construction

CHANGES ALLOWED

Plastering and patch repair

Replacing fallen bricks, stones, pillars, beams, etc

Reconstruction of portions of building damaged by rain, fire or any other natural calamity to the same extent and specification as existed prior to damage

Erection or re-erection of internal partition provided it is within purview of bylaws

Accidents Due To Low-Lying HT Cables

North East Delhi

Death hangs low over NE Delhi colonies

Accidents Due To Low-Lying HT Cables A Harsh Reality That Authorities Are Blind To

Naziya Alvi Rahman TNN

The Times of India 2013/07/26

Residents of northeast Delhi’s Mandoli village, Harsh Vihar Colony and Meet Nagar say they have now been living with the 11KV line passing through their terraces for over three decades now.

This wire and the homes have co-existed in this area since around 1980.

While Harsh Vihar and Meet Nagar are unauthorized colonies, Mandoli village, where the latest casualty occurred, is a Harijan basti where in 1986 houses were allotted under a scheme to benefit members of the SC/ST communities.

Power officials say that in March this year the department under a 2009 policy had released a few crores to MLAs of unauthorized colonies to fix the problem. As per the policy, the expenditure was to be equally divided between the power department and MLA (from the MLALAD fund). Following this, discoms [electricity supply companies] were told to prepare a scheme for shifting HT lines of 11kV and 33kV and LT lines of 400V from all residential areas.

See also

National Capital Region (NCR): India