Visakhapatnam: When it comes to deaths owing to collapse of structures, the undivided Andhra Pradesh stands 6th in the country registering about 3,217 deaths from the year 2001, according to the last available data with National Crime Records Bureau.
While Uttar Pradesh records the highest number of deaths at 5,690; with Maharashtra, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh following it with 4,237, 3,961, 3,457 death cases, respectively, due to collapse of various structures. Most of the building collapses happened in residential areas during the monsoon season.
The municipal bodies have been identifying unsafe buildings every year and slapping notices on the owners to renovate or demolish based on the inspection, but the dwellers are ignoring the warning.
A GVMC official said legal tangles, residents’ protest and other technical issues give civic bodies a tough time to pull down dangerous building many times. However, the dangerous buildings are being forcibly demolished even if the residents protested.
The eviction drive at a housing complex at Chilakapeta where about 68 housed were unsafe also faced protest from the residents, but the houses were demolished.
“Buildings approaching a construction age of 15 years or more should be regularly inspected, repaired and, if needed, redeveloped. Most of the times, these old buildings are left dilapidated and never refurbished, even where residents had noticed severe cracks beginning to appear in the building. Because no actions are taken despite warnings, the buildings eventually collapse,” said P. Ramesh, a retired civil engineer
“The lifespan of any building depends on many factors, including quality of building materials, external weather conditions, structural design and age of the structure. However, we have seen in the recent past that many collapses happened due to negligence of residents living in these old constructions,” he added.
The GVMC identified about 320 dilapidated buildings in 2016.
School buildings need inspection
The death of a playschool kid in the city recently at Visalakshinagar as the portion of a parapet wall collapsed has triggered the need of inspecting school buildings.
“Unsafe school building could be a massive threat. The government should inspect both the government and private buildings properly. Irregularities during construction could also lead to collapse, irrespective of whether those are old or not,” RTE activist N. Prakasa Rao said.
Mainly, schools in the rural areas should be given attention and inspected at regular intervals.
