Delhi starts PG survey; identify 52 running in dilapidated buildings

New DelhiThe Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) on Tuesday initiated a pan-Delhi survey of paying guest (PG) accommodations in the wake of the building collapse in Satya Nikentan, where seven people died, and identified 52 dilapidated buildings operating as PGs on the first day

New Delhi

The site of the building collapse at Satya Niketan. (Sanchit Khanna/HT Photo)

The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) on Tuesday initiated a pan-Delhi survey of paying guest (PG) accommodations in the wake of the building collapse in Satya Nikentan, where seven people died, and identified 52 dilapidated buildings operating as PGs on the first day.

Officials said that in all, they have identified 1,120 units operating as PG accommodations, with 20,481 people living in them.

A senior MCD official, who did not wish to be named, said: “The survey has been initiated on directions of the Delhi high court and it will be completed by Friday. At this stage, no punitive action is being taken; we are just identifying buildings and creating a database. Those found in poor or dilapidated condition are simply being advised to carry out repairs. On the first day, MCD teams found 52 PGs in a dilapidated state, while the others appeared to be in satisfactory condition.”

The official said that none of the buildings surveyed on Tuesday was classified as being in a dangerous or ruinous state. “Decisions regarding further action will be taken later to avoid a sudden housing crisis for students, as there is no existing mechanism to relocate students from vacated buildings to other government-run PGs. Such a move would also likely lead to higher rents, causing inconvenience to the students themselves,” the official added.

A second official said that the highest number of PGs, at 450, were found in the Civil Lines zone, which comprises areas such as Mukherjee Nagar, which is closest to Delhi University’s North Campus and 245 PGs were identified in the Keshavpuram zone. “These two zones alone accounted for bulk of these units. Information regarding PGs was also gathered from areas such as Munirka, Laxmi Nagar, Vishwas Nagar, Rajendra Nagar, and Karol Bagh,” the official said.

The official said that the current survey focuses solely on the condition of the buildings, and that a separate survey will be conducted later to assess structural safety and fire safety clearances.