UT no to multi-storey buildings in Sector 7, 22 for employees

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, December 17

The UT Chief Architect has made it clear that multi-storey buildings cannot be constructed in Sector 7 and 22 due to heritage restrictions. To bulldoze housing problems faced by employees in Chandigarh, the authorities concerned have at the same time added that multi-storey housing towers under construction in the IT Park would allotted to UT, Punjab and Haryana staffers.

In all, efforts would be made to construct at least 5,000 multi-storey houses after demolition of old, dilapidated, buildings that have outlived their lifetime.

Information to this effect was furnished before the Punjab and Haryana High Court during the hearing of a petition on housing and related issues. Justice Rajiv Narain Raina’s Bench, hearing the petition, was also told that a total of 15 path-breaking decisions had been taken during a meeting held on December 5 under the chairmanship of the UT Adviser and other officers of the UT Administration.

The Bench was also told that vacant land, if available, would be identified by the Urban Planning Department to construct additional government houses without violating the Master Plan. The Engineering Department would also examine the possibility of allotting “a big chunk of surplus land” available for construction of new houses on PPP mode as done in HUDCO Palace, New Moti Bagh and East Kidwai Nagar in New Delhi.

The Bench was further told that the UT Chief Architect would submit a list of sectors in which multi-storey buildings could be constructed for residential accommodation and the UT Chief Engineer-cum-Special Secretary (Engineering) would select the oldest houses in these sectors with spacious land available for construction of multistorey buildings.

The Bench was also told that 336 houses were already under construction. No less than 800 houses were to be constructed in addition to ease the housing problem for the Chandigarh Police personnel.

It was also submitted that houses would not be allotted unless the junior engineer concerned certified “the livability of the house”.

A committee comprising the area JE, representatives of the House Allotment Committee and the Deputy Commissioner’s office would chalk out a roadmap for inspection of each house, sector by sector, before coming out with an overall compliance report regarding “livability of the houses”.

Justice Raina appreciated the continued effort by UT Senior Standing Counsel Pankaj Jain and other counsels appearing before the Bench. The developments took place during the hearing of a petition filed by Chain Lal against the House Allotment Committee and other respondents.