Ludhiana MC notice to owners of unsafe buildings

Facing flak over its inaction against unsafe buildings in the city, Ludhiana MC on Monday issued fresh notices to building owners asking them to raze the unsafe buildings within 15 days

Facing flak over its inaction against unsafe buildings in the city, the Municipal Corporation (MC) has on Monday issued fresh notices to building owners asking them to raze the unsafe buildings within 15 days.

In the notices issued against 135 identified unsafe buildings in the city, the building branch officials have stated that the owners will be responsible for any loss of life and property if the building or its portion collapses during the rainy season. The Ludhiana MC has been facing flak over its inaction against unsafe buildings in the city. (Harvinder Singh/HT)

In the notices issued against 135 identified unsafe buildings in the city, the building branch officials have stated that the owners will be responsible for any loss of life and property if the building or its portion collapses during the rainy season.

Even as the risk of building collapse increases during the monsoons, due to strong winds and heavy rainfall, action by the civic body has remained limited to issuing notices to the owners. A public notice had also been issued to the owners in July 2020, directing them to get the buildings vacated, but to no avail.

The civic body officials stated that the MC does not have the powers to get the buildings vacated and that has to be done by the police. They have also been writing to the police department for the same. The cases regarding many of the buildings are also sub judice and the owner and tenants are at loggerheads over different issues, including ownership of decade-old property, due to which no action can be taken against the buildings without the intervention of respective courts, they added.

These are located in densely-populated areas, including Chaura Bazar, Daresi Road, Lakkar Bazar, Field Ganj, Shahi Mohalla and Iqbal Ganj Chowk. A number of buildings are also over 100 years old. While many of them are vacant, some are also occupied by residents or shops are being run in these buildings.

One of the officials stated that the notices have been served on the basis of a survey done last year. The number of buildings is more than 150 and MC also needs to conduct a fresh survey in the city.

A number of building collapse incidents have also been reported in the past. A 70-year-old man, Gurcharan Singh, had died after a part of an unsafe building collapsed while he was moving to Thapran mohalla in 2015.

Assistant town planner (ATP- headquarters), Raj Kumar stated that notices have been served by the ATPs in all the four zones of the city and the owners have been directed to vacate and raze the buildings in 15 days.

Senior town planner (STP) SS Bindra stated that the owners should vacate the buildings on their own as their lives are also at stake. The department will also write to the police department again to get the buildings vacated as the MC does not have the powers to get the buildings vacated.

MC stops illegal commercial construction work in residential area

Ludhiana : Receiving a complaint against illegal commercial construction being done in the residential area of Model Town (near old Krishna Mandir), the Municipal Corporation (MC) building branch stopped the construction work and removed the shed installed at the building on Monday.

Further, the MC officials have also got an affidavit signed from the building owner that no commercial construction will be done at the site.

Assistant town planner (ATP) MS Bedi stated that the building owner has been directed to stop the construction work at the site and the shed, which was installed in the house line area, has also been removed by the MC team.