Chintels Paradiso: Tower A deemed unsafe for residents, says audit

The development means that all towers in Chintels Paradiso, barring one — Tower B — have now been deemed unsafe by technical experts

A structural audit of the Chintels Paradiso condominium at Gurugram Sector 109 has found an eighth tower in the complex — Tower A — to be unsafe for habitation, and has recommended that it be vacated, people aware of the development said on Wednesday.

The Chintels Paradiso condominium at Sector 109 (HT Archive)

Officials with Chintels India Ltd, the builder, said that they commissioned the Central Building Research Institute (CBRI) audit, and have submitted the report to the district administration for further action. The administration, meanwhile, said that the matter will be discussed at the next meeting of the district probe committee.

The development means that all towers in the complex, barring one — Tower B — have now been deemed unsafe by technical experts, who have recommended that they be demolished, the people said.

On February 10, 2022, renovations at a sixth-floor flat of Tower D in the society led to the ceiling of a bedroom collapsing, causing a cascade effect in which portions of flats caved in all the way down to the first floor. Following the incident, in which two residents were killed, the Haryana department of town and country planning (DTCP) ordered a structural audit of the entire complex.

CBRI later in August declared Tower C unsafe, though a final decision is yet to be taken by the district probe committee.

A fresh audit by CBRI, dated October 1, stated that the Tower A structure has high chloride content, and its reinforcement is corroded, and thus recommended that the building be demolished as the cost of retrofitting it would be too high.

“Visually the present condition of the building seems better than other towers, however, it fails to meet the safety criteria as per the Indian standards... In view of the high chloride content in the structure and owing to the large number of failures of structural elements considering corrosion, the safe demolition of Tower A is advisable considering the human safety…,” the report said.

HT has seen a copy of the audit.

Chintels India Ltd vice-president JN Yadav said they had commissioned the audit of Tower A.

“We have submitted the report to the district committee for further action. The Tower A is also unsafe and once it is vacated, we will offer the owners compensation or they can opt for reconstruction. The report of Tower B, the last tower left in the condominium is also expected in the next 10 days. We will ensure that compensation is given to flat owners at the earliest and claims are settled on priority,” he said.

Yadav also said that flat owners, who have opted for reconstruction and with whom an agreement has been signed, will be given rent from January 1 till the time the flats are reconstructed and handed over to them.

Manish Yadav, district town planner, enforcement, who is the member of the district probe committee, said, “The matter will be discussed in the meeting.”

The Chintels Paradiso RWA, however, expressed dissatisfaction with the report on Tower A and said that it was drafted in a way that will make it easier to declare the structure unsafe. “Tower A and C are in good condition and residents have no need to panic. We will closely work with the administration and flat owners to raise our demands,” said Rakesh Hooda, president of the RWA. They had also opposed to the demand of ₹1000 per sq ft payment by owners opting for reconstruction.