NEW DELHI: Just days after a building collapse near Chawri Bazaar metro station in Old Delhi claimed seven lives, the latest Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) survey has revealed a stark concentration of repairable properties in the area, with the City SP zone accounting for nearly 54% of all such buildings identified across the Capital.
The finding is significant because the zone accounted for just 2.9% of the houses surveyed, according to the October 12 report. The MCD identified 553 repairable properties across the city, of which 298 were in the City SP zone, covering large parts of Old Delhi.
Every year, the civic body conducts pre- and post-monsoon structural safety surveys across its 12 zones under Sections 348 and 349 of the DMC Act to identify dangerous and repairable buildings. Of the 30,66,188 houses surveyed across the Capital, only 90,214 were in the City SP zone.
The concentration of repairable properties in the area comes into sharp focus against the backdrop of the November 5 collapse of a three-storey building in the narrow lanes of Gali Sheesh Mahal near Chawri Bazaar metro station. On April 28, the MCD had issued an advisory to the building’s owner warning him about its deteriorated condition.
Within the City SP zone, 48 repairable properties were recorded under the Maintenance-I division and 250 under Maintenance-II. The building and maintenance departments monitor the zone’s properties, with the latter further divided into two divisions.
The report records only 10 properties as repaired—nine under Maintenance-I and one under Maintenance-II. It also states that advisories were issued for all 250 repairable properties under Maintenance-II. However, it does not specify the current status of the remaining properties or how many owners carried out repairs following the notices. The City SP zone had 12 properties classified as dangerous.
HC: Repair of dangerous buildings during GRAP
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