A three-storey building has tilted precariously. Declared unsafe, the owner refuses to abandon it
A three-storey building has tilted precariously. Declared unsafe, the owner refuses to abandon it
|
| Flirting with disaster: The building has tilted considerably during the last few days after the onset of Monsoon. Pic/Imtiyaz Khan |
Residents of Beadonpura, Karol Bagh in central Delhi are literally spending sleepless nights over a danger that is lurking over their heads.
A three-storey building in their neighbourhood has started tilting towards its left. When alarmed residents asked the owner Bodhan Lal to get it rectified, he picked up a fight with them and his daughter-in-law Laxmi Gupta complained to the police that their neighbours were harassing them.
When the police came to investigate the matter, they realised the gravity of the problem and immediately informed the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD).
The civic agency, after an inspection, sealed the basement of the building and declared it 'dangerous' for occupation.
They advised Bodhan Lal that he should immediately shift to an alternative place with his family.
However, even with the danger to his life, Lal has refused to vacate the premises. "I have nowhere to go. I don't have any other house in Delhi and cannot afford to take a house on rent," he said.
His neighbours though are not so daring. Many of them have stopped sleeping in their houses and leave for alternative places during the night.
Karan Lal, who lives in the neighbourhood, said Lal had agreed to get the building demolished after it was declared unsafe but then he had a sudden change of heart and now he is dead against it.
"We cannot sleep in our house. We are living in constant danger to our lives. The MCD should have taken strict action but even police have not done anything so far," said Karan.
In the name of barricading the building, which is tilting to a greater degree by the day, the MCD has only put some bamboos in the way.
When the civic agency finally initiated action, the Lal family fled to some place and locked the house. Due to this reason, the building is still standing a testimony to the indifference of both the police and the civic agency.
The police have now asked the MCD to go ahead with the demolition even though the house is locked. The official spokesperson of the MCD said he was not privy to the issue, as it concerns the zone officials. The zone commissioner and other officials could not be reached for comment.
The local corporator Mandeep Kaur told MiD DAY that a meeting has been called to decide the date and time of the demolition.
| Deadly grounds |
| A labourer was killed during a demolition carried out by the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) in the Mori Gate area on Tuesday. The incident occurred when a private agency engaged by the MCD was demolishing a two-storey building declared as dangerous by the civic body.The action was initiated by the Building Department of the City Zone at 3149-51, Ram Bazar, a 30-year-old structure earlier declared dangerous. On July 16, the MCD had served a notice asking the occupants to vacate the building. |
