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MCD has a lot to answer as Delhi govt orders probe

Tuesday, 16 November 2010 10:53 administrator
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Indian Express  16.11.2010

MCD has a lot to answer as Delhi govt orders probe

Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit ordered a probe into the building collapse in Lalita Park on Monday night but questions were already being asked about the role of the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) in allowing unauthorised construction in the area.

Declining comment on what may have led to the collapse, the MCD maintained it was busy in rescue-and-relief operations and its deputy commissioners would provide details regarding the building. MCD spokesman Deep Mathur said all efforts had been channelised into rescue operations. “No one knew the building would collapse.”

The building that collapsed was located in an unauthorised colony that had been regularised. Most buildings in the area were built without clearances.

Yoginder Chandolia, chairperson of the Standing Committee of MCD, told Newsline that water seepage led to the collapse. “The building is located on the banks of Yamuna. During the recent flood, water reached the building foundation and weakened it considerably, resulting in the collapse,” he said.

Chandolia said the fact that it was an unauthorised colony meant that the building had been constructed without clearances. “The landlord kept building more floors. More than a hundred people lived there. The building was around 15 years old. The MCD did not know it was going to collapse,” he said.

Police identified the owner of the building as Amrit Singh and said he was absconding with his family. He is a resident of R-Block in the area. The owner, police claimed, kept building more floors without checking if the pillars could take the load.

The building collapse has given rise to fears about the safety of other buildings in the area. But MCD officials, whose job it is to alert residents about potentially dangerous buildings, were silent on when was the last time they had checked on the locality.

Mathur said a probe has been ordered. “We are working with the Fire Service and police to rescue those trapped inside. We have alerted hospitals as well,” he said.

Last Updated on Tuesday, 16 November 2010 10:56
 

Engineers gun for TCP dept

Tuesday, 16 November 2010 10:03 administrator
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The Times of India  16.11.2010

Engineers gun for TCP dept

PANAJI: A demand by the registered civil engineers association (diploma holders) to allow their members with ten years of experience to sign construction, land development and other plans will be referred to the steering committee related to the framing of the Goa Land Development and Building Construction Regulations 2010.

A group of civil engineers/structural engineers (diploma holders) held a demonstration outside the town and country planning department's office on Monday protesting the TCP's move not to accept the registration forms of members who possess ten years experience.

TCP had announced that all professionals in the construction sector had to register afresh from November 8 as per the new regulations. However, as far as civil engineers (diploma) are concerned, only those who were registered prior to 1995 are eligible for registration.

"We will refer the matter to the steering committee headed by chief minister Digambar Kamat and whatever decision is taken will be at the panel's discretion," TCP senior town planner S Puttaraju told TOI.

Another one of the engineers' demands-to maintain a status quo and allow them to sign plans of new constructions, RCC designs of buildings and issue stability certificates till a decision is taken about the criterion for registration-has been referred to the government on Monday. "This matter will be referred to the government," Puttaraju confirmed.

Curtorim MLA Aleixo Reginaldo Lourenco was also present with engineers who met Puttaraju and other officials.

The engineers demanded that the assurances given by Kamat in a meeting on October 20 be fulfilled. In this meeting with Kamat, it had been mutually agreed that diploma holders possessing ten years of experience would be eligible for registration with the TCP. Kamat, who holds the TCP portfolio, had agreed to examine the issue of allowing them to sign building plans, structural drawings and issue stability certificates.

"We should also be given representation in the steering committee appointed by the government," association chairman Donald Fernandes said

The engineers were agitated over the change in the definition of civil engineers in the Goa Land Development and Building Construction Regulations 2010. It allows the registration of only those engineers who have been registered prior to 1995. Naguesh Gaunekar, the association's joint secretary and other members, explained their problems if the new regulations, which were notified on September 9 were enforced.

"If the year 1995 is taken as the cut off period, engineers practicing prior to that will be restricted to signing only plans, while those registered after 1995 will be rendered totally jobless," Roque Mascarenhas, a member of the association said. Around 80 civil engineers emerge annually from institutions conducting diploma courses.
Last Updated on Tuesday, 16 November 2010 10:04
 

A roadmap for the future

Tuesday, 16 November 2010 09:54 administrator
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The Times of India                16.11.2010

A roadmap for the future

GURGAON: In the post-liberalisation era, the city has witnessed unexpected growth pushing transport and traffic demand whereas the necessary infrastructure has not got adequately upgraded. Urban planners feel Gurgaon can still fix its issues, but the plans and measures have to be in place and these must become a priority of the government and local administration.

Separate Corridors: There are three types of traffic movements through Gurgaon inter-state, inter-city and intra-city. In the absence of alternative roads, these three categories of traffic spill over to the Delhi-Gurgaon Expressway, which forms a part of NH-8 connecting Delhi to Mumbai. These three types of traffic have to be segregated by creating separate road network for each category of vehicles. The Expressway should take care of the inter-state traffic. The idea is to construct good and wide service roads along the Expressway for local traffic movement. They must not end up on the spinal cord crowding the stretch, says urban transport planner N Ranganathan.

Though the Expressway is also largely used for inter-state traffic, there is a need to have more such corridors for easy clearance of traffic movement within the cities of NCR. Gurgaons transport and traffic planning also needs to be synchronised with the overall planning of Delhi and other constituent cities of NCR. Moreover, access to properties along the main roads needs to be regulated. Minimising accesses from the main roads would help decongest the arterial corridors.

Mass-Transit and Rail Network: Though Gurgaon has to fix its immediate transport and traffic mess, it also needs to have a futuristic planning considering the fact that the city will grow beyond Manesar and Sohna Road in the next decade or so. Roads have a limited capacity. Construction of any number of flyovers and widening of the existing roads wont take traffic load beyond a point. Well need to shift people to the railway and Metro from roads. Well need to look for less capital-intensive solutions than always focussing on elevated Metro corridors and other mass transport networks, says H R Suri, former president of the Institute for Town Planners in India (ITPI). The mass transport and rail system should be supplemented by a smart and reliable feeder bus system.

Institutional Reform: Gurgaon needs to have a dedicated institution for transport planning and traffic management. The future growth has to be transport led. Development of new sectors, industrial and commercial zones must be done after addressing the future demand of these particular localities and its impact on the city as a whole. A transport and traffic master plan should be prepared with the input from all stakeholders and this should be implemented in a time-bound manner.
 
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