KOLKATA: Following the recent collapse of several unsafe buildings after heavy rainfall, the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) has initiated a city-wide campaign to demolish highly insecure structures, aiming to prevent further accidents.
A KMC buildings department official stated that they are monitoring 300 extremely dilapidated buildings from a total of 3,000 identified as unsafe and requiring urgent repair or partial demolition. Most of these buildings are situated in boroughs I to IX.
According to another official, the KMC is concentrating on numerous old and unstable buildings in areas such as Cossipore, Burtolla, Burrabazar, Rabindra Sarani, and others.
The buildings department began surveying the city’s grade-I hazardous structures three years ago in response to a series of collapses that resulted in fatalities. Records indicate that many insecure buildings or portions of them have collapsed every monsoon; in 2021 alone, 30 buildings fell across the city during this season.
“With the monsoon season underway, we are actively working on a large-scale initiative to demolish some of the most hazardous buildings to protect both residents and the public. We hope to avert casualties this year due to building collapses,” a civic official explained.
The borough executive engineers have been directed to assess the condition of these notably dilapidated structures and to either compel owners to perform necessary repairs or initiate demolition.
An engineer noted, “These century-old buildings, constructed with lime and mortar, are at risk of collapse after rainfall. Unlike modern structures that use cement, many of these older buildings used lime. When water penetrates the structure during heavy rains, followed by dry weather, the lime weakens and may lead to a collapse.”
