More than six years after the Public Works Department rated the building housing the Powerloom Service Centre at Surampatti in the city as “not fit” for occupation, the structure is still being utilised since efforts to shift the facility have not yielded results.
The only hope now in the minds of the staff is that the genuineness of their prolonged desire to move out for safety reasons was determined by none other than the Union Textiles Minister Smriti Irani during her visit last week.
The ceiling has been tapering off continuously, and there is a grave danger of the roof getting weakened, according to the staff.
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In a petition submitted to the Minister, M. Rajesh, Member, All India Powerloom Board, said that the lives of 10 staff members, customers and a number of students who are trained at the centre were at risk if the building was not shifted at the earliest.
The Union Textile Ministry must act promptly on the observations made in writing by the State’s Public Works Department and Director of Handlooms that the Powerloom Service Centre has to be shifted due to weakness of the structure, Mr. Rajesh said.