BMC plans power cuts to save lives

In an innovative bid to avoid loss of lives in building collapses by evicting tenants from dilapidated structures, municipal commissioner Subodh Kumar has directed civic officials to cut electricity and water supply in such buildings, making them unfit for habitation.

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has framed new laws, which are still pending, to empower itself to evict tenants forcibly from dilapidated buildings.

Currently, 244 buildings have been listed as dangerous and highly dilapidated in the BMC’s pre-monsoon survey — 192 are private buildings and 52 municipal. Although the BMC has declared these buildings unsafe during the monsoon, residents continue to risk their lives in these deathtraps as they  have no choice.

On most occasions, the building owner, Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (Mhada) or the BMC is unable to provide alternate housing to tenants. Sometimes, transit accommodation is offered far away from their locality and tenants are reluctant to move.

On Friday, Kumar met with officers and engineers from the city engineering department. “He asked them why they don’t simply cut water and electricity supply in such dilapidated buildings,” revealed a source from the civic body.

“The civic chief is going to issue a letter to all departments concerned to cut water and electricity of dilapidated buildings in the city. But the letter is yet to be received,” the source added.