The collapse of two buildings in Pulakeshinagar last Wednesday has drawn the ire of citizens’ groups.
The North-East Residents’ Welfare Association, the Residents’ Welfare Association Bangalore East (REWABE), and others have been fighting cases against builders for building code and setback violations. Citizens allege that despite bringing building violations in their neighbourhood to the attention of the BBMP, the BDA, and the BWSSB, they get little support.
Indira Arun, secretary, REWABE, is considering approaching the court over the recent building collapse and other violations in the area. The RWA is fighting three cases along with the BBMP against a few builders. “However, the officials are apathetic. They absent themselves for the hearing or came unprepared and sometimes without files. This time, we will not fight along with the BBMP. We have decided to take them to the court shortly,” she said. Ms. Arun alleged that apathy on part of the civic officials has not only delayed justice, but also denied it.
Members of the North-East Residents’ Welfare Association, too, have been reporting building violations to the authorities. D.S. Rajashekar, a member of the association, said it was the duty and responsibility of ward engineers to see that under-construction buildings stick to their approved building plan. “Assistant Engineers and Assistant Executive Engineers should be made accountable at the ward level and Executive Engineers at the constituency level. But these days, money is prioritised over safety and hence quality assurance remains a concern.”
The trust between agencies and citizens is eroding. Mahalakshmi Parthasarathy, a citizen activist, said: “Local engineers are aware of all the violations, but they choose to keep silent. Hence there is no follow-up on buildings violating laws, be it by the enforcement agencies, neighbours, or even the media.”
