THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: The City Corporation on Friday initiated a technical investigation into the rapid deterioration of flats constructed under the Rajiv Gandhi Awas Yojana in Vizhinjam, after complaints that concrete slabs were falling off buildings and that reinforcement bars had rusted severely within just six to seven years after construction, posing a threat to the families living there.
The Government Engineering College has launched a study to assess structural damage and scope of repairs. Mayor V V Rajesh said that the engineering college has been asked to determine why the buildings deteriorated so quickly and whether the structural defects can be rectified. He said he had visited the housing complex twice before raising the matter at a council meeting.
The project had an estimated cost of around Rs 90 crore, though the mayor said the actual expenditure might have been lower. The rapid deterioration of the buildings has raised questions about the quality of construction and the possibility of irregularities in the execution of the project.
“The buildings began deteriorating within just six or seven years after construction. Concrete slabs have started falling off, and the reinforcement bars have rusted to such an extent that they can be broken by hand,” the mayor said. The mayor said the corporation’s engineers had concluded that routine maintenance would not offer a lasting solution.
The civic body therefore decided to seek an expert assessment from the Government Engineering College before determining the remedial measures. The mayor said the condition of the flats had raised suspicions of large-scale corruption or serious deficiencies during construction. “If the probe establishes that there were deficiencies and that they were caused deliberately, the corporation will initiate the appropriate investigation and action. Public money must not be misused, particularly in projects for poor and marginalised families,” he said.