KOLKATA: The Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) has for the first time issued notices to owners of "severely insecure" buildings and asked them to vacate the premises at the earliest.
The Building department of KMC has identified more than 100 such structures. Copies of the notices have been given to the Kolkata Police.
Most of the buildings are more than 100-year-old and have not been maintained for decades. Most of them are tenanted and the tenants pay less than Rs 100 per month as rent. These structures are situated in south and north Kolkata and Behala.
Senior civic officials said the notices had been given as the owners had refused to vacate the houses. Every monsoon, portions of old buildings collapse leading to loss of lives. As the laws do not permit, the KMC cannot pull these structures down. The rain water system of these buildings has become inoperative because of lack of repair. So, when it rains heavily, the water that gets accumulated on the roof exerts pressure on the buildings. As they have not been maintained for years, the structures fail to bear the additional load and collapse leading to loss of lives. In the past 10 years, more than 100 people living in old dilapidated buildings had died when portions of the structures fell on them, the officials said.
The KMC has identified more than 2000 insecure buildings in the city and put up boards outside the premises. But despite that the owners continue to live in them risking their lives. The civic authorities have even requested them to pull down the old structures and construct new ones with proper arrangement for the tenants. The KMC will give additional FAR in such cases. Though some owners have approached the KMC and sanctioned plans for new buildings, the response is not very high.
The officials said the civic authorities had failed to identify the owners of many old structures in the city particularly in north Kolkata.
The buildings have been encroached upon and the trespassers do not pay property tax. The Borough offices have been asked to intensify vigil on old dilapidated buildings and the KMC has kept the demolition squad ready as many of them collapse following heavy shower.