AHMEDABAD: To curb surreptitious building repairs in the walled city, municipal commissioner Guruprasad Mohapatra has issued a notification restricting any repair works of listed heritage properties without the permission of the AMC. The notification says that the new heritage laws are part of the general development control regulation and any owner caught doing unlawful repair works will face strict action.

The notification was issued on July 24. It states, "Owners and stakeholders of listed heritage buildings are hereby directed not to demolish any listed heritage building or structure, unless a written permission is obtained from the competent authority of the AMC. Any violation of this notice will be dealt strictly under the provisions of the GDCR." The list has been accredited by the Heritage Conservation Committee ( HCC) which has jurisdiction over heritage properties within AMC and Ahmedabad Urban Development Authority ( AUDA) limits.

A detailed list of more than 12,500 heritage properties of the walled city has been put up by the AMC on its website. "There have been few demolitions in the walled city even after a gazette notification was brought out few months ago. The recent public notice is to warn the owners who are indulging in unlawful repair works of their buildings. We even have information that some heritage structures are being pulled down to turn them into commercial properties," says a senior AMC official.