With Maradu residents raising concerns about the safety of their homes located near the apartments that are being pulled down, the Maradu municipal authorities have called a meeting of the residents on Wednesday.
Nearly 50 select representatives of the residents have been invited to the meeting to be held at the Maradu municipal council hall at 2 p.m.
A section of the residents has demanded that demolition expert S.B. Sarvate attend the meeting along with civic officials. The meeting would address the concerns raised by the residents, said an official of the municipality.
Also read | Demolition will not impact nearby structures: Sarwate
The concrete walls of some of the nearby houses had developed cracks and a few residents had moved out of the area after the companies began the pre-demolition works. The residents were worried that the damage caused by the pre-demolition jobs had not been covered under any insurance scheme. The municipality will decide on the ₹125-crore insurance scheme for the demolition job shortly. The validity of the insurance scheme will be one year from the date of demolition. The State government will pay the premium for the insurance scheme.
The authorities are also considering a proposal for renting out homes for accommodating the residents who had to move out of their homes due to the impact of demolition.
Meanwhile, civic officials admitted that the demolition agencies failed in ensuring adequate safety measures for the nearby structures while razing the apartments. The companies would be made responsible for the damage caused to the nearby structures including homes. The firms had been asked to strictly follow the safety guidelines, the official said.
Aluva-based firm
The authorities on Tuesday picked up Prompt Enterprises, an Aluva-based company, for removing the debris from the demolition sites. The company will have to remove the debris from the sites in compliance with the guidelines set by the Kerala State Pollution Control Board. The firm will have to pay a fee of around ₹35 lakh to the State government for collecting and removing the demolition waste.
The demolition waste could be reused for the construction of hollow cement bricks, road laying and filling up of construction sites. The materials should be removed in the vehicles of the company without causing any environment hazards and pollution, municipal authorities said.
Demolition plan
Though the State had informed the Supreme Court that the demolition of the Maradu apartments would be over by January 9, 2020, the actual demolition would be delayed by a few more days. According to the revised plan, the buildings will be brought down by using controlled demolition on January 11 and 12.
