KARIMNAGAR: What happens when you try to renovate a building without repairing its underlying rot? You find yourself in the same position that RTC authorities in Karimnagar find themselves in. The Telangana State Road Transport Corporation wanted to make the bus depot swanky and modern, and sanctioned a whopping `5 crore for the renovation works. But the authorities forgot one important thing — renovation also means that a building’s structural integrity cannot be overlooked. On the surface, the building is getting a glass facade, but on the inside, passengers are treated with the sight of water seepage and rusting iron beams.
As of now, the renovation works have stopped after protests from some organisations brought the issue to the corporation’s notice. Due to a lack of supervision, or direction, the renovation works are going on without addressing these issues. Citizens observe how the scaffolding has been fixed to structures that look weak even to an untrained eye.
“Before beautifying the building, they should first tried to ascertain how long the building will even stay up,” a traveller said. It is also observed that many areas undergoing renovation do not have any warning signs for people to stay clear. In such hazardous circumstances, accidents seem waiting to happen.
Civil works division engineer Vadlakond Laxman said that he had been informed about the situation by a few people. “It has come to our notice that some portions of the building look weak and that there is water leakage as well. We have directed the contracted agency to not work on these portions for now so that the repair can take place. As of now, the work has stalled at these places,” he said.