Highlights
- Noida authorities now focus on 100 more such illegal structures
- Majority of these buildings received approval between 2009 and 2014
- BJP has demanded audit of such illegal structures in Mumbai too
Noida twin tower demolished: Nine years after a residents association went to court over the illegally built Supertech twin towers, a series of controlled explosions reduced the 100-metre tall structures to a mountain of rubble – watched by thousands from surrounding rooftops and lakhs on live television.
Impending action against more such structures?
The Noida Authority has now moved its attention to the 100 or so similar buildings in the neighbourhood to see if they, too, were built in violation of the law in the wake of the twin tower demolition, according to a report in Hindustan Times. The majority of these buildings received approval around the same time as the twin towers, between 2009 and 2014.
Demand for audit of such illegal structures elsewhere too
Bharatiya Janata Party leader Kirit Somaiya on Monday requested Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde to undertake a special audit of illegal high rise buildings in Mumbai to protect the interests of flat owners.
In a letter to the CM, Somaiya said,
The corrupt practices in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) have resulted in the erection of high-rise residential towers in Mumbai. On the backdrop of the Supreme Court's decision to demolish the twin towers in Noida, a special audit of such illegal towers in Mumbai should be undertaken. Such buildings are either without the Occupancy Certificate from the civic body or have obtained partial OC. Such practices have elevated the concerns of people who have purchased flats in these buildings.
The illegally built Supertech twin towers in Noida were demolished on Sunday. The closest residential complex was just nine metres away and the residents had complained that the illegal towers blocked their view.
The Supreme Court had ordered the demolition a year back, saying there had been “collusion” between the builders and Noida Authority officials who let Supertech Ltd construct in the area where no buildings were to come up according to the original plans.
Also Read | Noida twin towers: India joins 100-metre building demolition club
The builders paid for the demolition, which cost about Rs 20 crore. According to the company, their overall loss is around Rs 500 crore. That includes land, construction and interest costs. A team from Edifice Engineering and South Africa’s Jet Demolitions – the two companies that carried out the challenging task – the Central Building Research Institute (CBRI) and the Noida Authority began a structural audit of the adjoining buildings. Water sprinklers and anti-smog guns were activated at the site soon after the demolition to help contain the dust.
In India, high-rise buildings have been demolished only once earlier through controlled explosions. In Maradu municipality area of Kochi, Kerala, four 18 to 20-storey buildings were razed in 2020 for violating Coastal Regulation Zone norms. Edifice and Jet Demolitions had collaborated then as well. Jet also brought down the 108-metre-tall Bank of Lisbon building in Johannesburg, South Africa, in November 2019.
Also Read | Noida twin towers: BJP blames Samajwadi Party for allowing the project
