Civic body to start razing Christopher Rd bldg today
Times of India | 30 January 2025
12 Kolkata: The KMC buildings department has decided to start the demolition of the newly constructed G+5 building on Christopher Road from Thursday. This building, constructed illegally, caused the adjoining residential building to tilt.
The mayor, meanwhile, met officials of the Haryana-based company that was trying to address the tilt of another building near Baghajatin before the operation went horribly wrong, leading to its collapse. KMC is currently engaged in pulling that building down.
The decision to demolish the building on Christopher Road was taken to pre-empt any bid by the developer or flat buyers to stall the action against the illegal structure. A demonstration staged by some of the owners of flats in the building on Tuesday seems to have prompted the civic body to act soon. The agitators were demanding compensation from KMC for the demolition.
Originally, KMC decided to demolish the two-year-old building, Pushpanjali Apartment, next door. The building that is occupied leaned towards the newly constructed building. However, it was later decided that the leaning building would be spared as it was owing to the illegal construction of the new building.
While the developer of the new building did not leave enough space between the two buildings, structural engineers told TOI the soil below the foundation of the existing building may have been dislodged when earth was being excavated for the foundation of the new building as adequate protective measures were not taken.
According to a KMC building department source, structural engineer Snehasish Sinha, who was roped in by the KMC buildings department to conduct a structural survey of the tilted Pushpanjali Apartment, advised that it be spared. Instead, he called for the demolition of the newly constructed building. "We will start the demolition drive without wasting time. We need to check whether Pushpanjali Apartment can be spared from demolition once the newly constructed building is demolished," said a KMC buildings department official.
Meanwhile, officials from the engineering firm from Haryana that attempted to lift the tilted building near Baghajatin with disastrous results met mayor Firhad Hakim on Wednesday. Later, the team held a meeting with the senior building department officials. According to a KMC buildings department source, Hakim inquired about the firm's credentials in carrying out such precision engineering work.
"We are interested in drawing a list of credible firms with proven track record to rectify tilted buildings. These firms may be engaged to address tilted buildings in Kolkata," said a civic official.