Deccan Chronicle 12.12.2013
VMC to act on old buildings
of old buildings in the city will now have to obtain a structural
stability certificate and submit it to the Vijayawada Municipal
Corporation to save the structures from being demolished within a week.
Municipal
commissioner C. Harikiran told this newspaper that the corporation has
identified over 180 dilapidated buildings in the city and has started
issuing final notices to the owners.
He said that the owners should
come forward voluntarily to demolish their buildings or produce a
certificate certifying the stability of the building. “The owners should
get the certificate from certified engineering experts. The test costs
around Rs 20,000,” Harikiran said.
The municipal commissioner said
the town planning officials were planning to act immediately keeping in
view safety of the public. “The municipal officials will conduct
physical verification of the buildings at first and issue notices to the
owners. If the owners fail to respond, the officials will resort to
demolishing dilapidated structures.”
A majority of the old buildings are in I-Town, Gandhinagar, Governorpet, Suryaraopet and other commercial areas.
As
many of the owners have rented the buildings for commercial purposes,
they are not willing to repair them, for years altogether.
It may
be noted that an old building collapsed recently when the owners are
carrying out repairs to the building, resulting in the death of three
persons in I-Town.
Following the tragedy, the officials have
identified old structures and dilapidated in the city as directed by the
municipal commissioner.
bear the cost of the demolishing, as the municipal corporation is facing
a financial crisis. They are keen that the owners bear the expense.
