Mumbai: BMC shrugs off blame on AAI for giving OCs

In a 201516 survey 317 structures were found violating safety heightIn what is sure to raise hackles of most real estate developers the Bombay High Court on Wednesday ordered action against buildings that could be possible threats to incoming and outgoing flights at Mumbai Airport Now the BMC on Thursday issued a clarification that the occupation certificate OC for such structures were given only after the Airport Authority of India AAI granted a noobjection certificate NOC to buildersCourt rulingOn Wednesday the high court ordered the demolition or reduction of height for around 427 residential and commercial buildings that have been identified as having violated prescribed norms The decision came after a PIL by Yeshwanth Shenoy that raised concerns about the safety of flights due to extended building heights Now the High court has given Airport Authority of India AAI Directorate General of Civil Aviation DGCA BMC and other planning authorities two months time to get a handle on the situationAlso read Kerala lawyer explains his motive behind filing PIL for demolishing illegal structures around Mumbai airportAs per the court according to a survey conducted in 201011 by AAI and Mumbai International Airport Limited MIAL there were 110 structures found as obstruction in flight path After these finding the DGCA had issued a notice to these structures however no action was taken In another survey carried out in 201516 317 structures were found violating safety height Now the court has directed DGCA to take appropriate action within two monthsIn its nononsense order a division bench headed by Justice VM Kanade said violators must be dealt with ruthlessly as their buildings pose a major safety threat and obstruct flight path There is no point feeling bad for the developers of these buildings or its residents The authorities cannot just sit and wait for an accident to occur Justice Kanade saidBMC claimsA senior civic official from the BMC on condition of anonymity said We are aware of the development but have not got the order copy yet Once we do we will send it to the legal department for their opinion and then decide on action The BMC does not carry out any such survey of buildings and the figures could have been given by AAI Also since these buildings fall in the vicinity of flight operation AAI plays a crucial role in giving permission to builders If there is any violation in height then AAI is supposed to take action or we can take action against buildings in coordination with themWith this order buildings in areas like Vile Parle Santacruz Andheri Kurla Chembur Ghatkopar could soon face actionAnother senior official from BMCs building proposal department said A few years ago following a complaint we had conducted a similar survey of buildings near the airport and about 30 buildings were found to be violating norms which we demolishedCurrently AAI approval is required for buildings of any height within a 3km radius of the airport Beyond that different height limits are set by AAI However despite repeated attempts AAI officials could not be reached for comment