CHENNAI – Action against builders who violate norms
VIOLATION AND DEVIATION HAS BECOME THE ORDER OF THE DAY AND THE FAMILIES LIVING IN AND AROUND SUCH CONSTRUCTIONS/BUILDINGS ARE THE VICTIMS AND ARE SUFFERING FROM SUCH ILLEGAL ACTIVITIES.
Families living in an apartment complex (XXXXXXXX Road, Chennai) have been struggling with a promoter who built a multi-storey residential building without any setback right next door.
The families complained that the building under construction was being raised on the compound wall of their apartment complex, which is more than 20 years old.
Residents complained to the Chennai Metropolitan Development Authority with the hope that swift action would be taken to put an end to the violation. However, the CMDA, the city’s principal planning agency, has forwarded the complaint to the Chennai Corporation instructing it to take appropriate action.
Activists said the government seems to be unable to keep building violations, especially of small and medium housing projects in the central business district under check. Sources said that while violations of buildings norms were causing havoc in the city, the government agencies, on receipt of a complaint, had to first check the characteristic of the locality. For instance, end-to-end construction was permitted in many ‘continuous building areas’ in the city.
Sources in the Department of Housing and Urban Development said inadequate field staff in CMDA was an important reason they were unable to act immediately on complaints.
Corporation sources said the local body placed many buildings under lock-and-seal except in cases where they had issued planning permission.