Orders to raze unsafe buildings issued yet again

KARACHI
City Commissioner Shoaib Ahmed Siddiqui has directed the Sindh Building Control Authority (SBCA) to launch a campaign against dangerous buildings where people are still residing and take steps to demolish them.
He issued these orders while presiding over a meeting to review dangerous buildings in Karachi. He assured the SBCA that full support of law-enforcement agencies would be provided to the SBCA when it launches its drive against dangerous buildings. Siddiqui also directed that vacant buildings be taken into the government’s custody.
Speaking at the meeting, officials of the SBCA said if they were provided backup comprising law-enforcement personnel then the authority would launch its campaign very soon against the 301 dangerous buildings in the city.
The commissioner responded that the top priority of the government was to ensure the safety of citizens and the government will ensure that dangerous buildings they resided in were vacated.
The commissioner also ordered deputy commissioner of district South to conduct a survey of dangerous buildings in his district and submit a report to him within three days.
Replying to a question about why the dangerous buildings haven’t been vacated, deputy commissioner said they obtain stay order from court and then the hands of administration became tied. He requested the court to think about the safety of citizens before issuing stay orders.
The SBCA officials added that they had already given notices to the residents of dangerous buildings but they were not willing to leave their homes.
The SBCA has declared 301 buildings to be dangerous in Karachi and their owners were issued notices for vacation of these buildings as early as possible because they were not safe to live in.
The SBCA spokesman while speaking at the meeting said after the recent rains in the city, the building control authority made announcements and fixed posters near the dangerous buildings to the residents may be warned of the consequences.
In a report released at the end of last month, the SBCA had declared more than 301 buildings in the city to be dangerous. It claimed that owners and residents of these buildings had been warned but they refused to vacate the premises.
According to the SBCA’s technical committee, out of the 301 dangerous buildings in the city 236 are in Saddar Town, 11 in Jamshed Town, 21 in Lyari, 18 in Liaquatabad, three each in Keamari and Baldia Town, two each in Malir and Shah Faisal Colony while Gulshan-e-lqbal, Gulberg, Korangi, North Nazimabad and SITE areas each have one dangerous building which is liable to be demolished.
The building control authority had sprung into action after a powerful earthquake had jolted the country on October 26 and in this had had chalked out a plan in collaboration with the commissioner’s office for the demolition of dangerous buildings in the city.