Hyderabad: To avoid the occurrence of unanticipated incidents during the upcoming monsoons, Greater Hyderabad Municipal Corporation (GHMC) banned the excavation of new cellars in the city.
On Monday, the GHMC’s commissioner instructed its Town Planning Wing to inspect construction sites in Hyderabad and identify the structures where cellars have been excavated.
Officials of the corporation were further asked to inspect the sites where cellar excavations are in progress and at those sites, besides verifying the cellar setbacks.
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Through the inspection, GHMC will ensure that the structures are built as per the sanctioned building plan and issuance of notices will be initiated immediately as a safety measure.
Soil strengthening, construction of retaining walls, barricading and making sure the water is not stagnant in the cellars are a few safety measures that would be uptaken by the corporation.
GHMC has warned of action against those in non-compliance with the notice where the officials will initiate the process to revoke the building permits accorded and cancel the builder’s license, in addition to filing a criminal case of negligence against them.
The order issued by the GHMC states that if the cellar is already dug while the works are not in progress, the safety of the surrounding structures has to be checked and precautionary measures should be taken.
GHMC has directed immediate action to be taken for such sites by sealing the cellars and transporting the debris to the Construction and Demolition (C&D) waste recycling plant.
The order further stated that special attention should be given to the areas with sloppy terrains, rock-cutting sites and places with chances of landslide, as a part of monsoon preparedness.
“If required the GHMC officials should relocate the people residing below the sloppy terrain,” the orders said.
