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Vashi2Panvel.Com: Navi Mumbai: Sept 14: After a series of house collapses in Mumbai, Navi Mumbaikars are begining to feel the heat too. Despite being a new city, threre are several houses in Navi Mumbai where the threat looms large. Though authorities deny any such grave risk in the near future, the residents are finding it difficult to swallow. With no transit camps in the city for casualty and the weak structures of the buildings here, the fear definitely seems to be real.

Says Patni Giri, town planner-NMMC, “Some buildings have been declared unsafe by us but they are not that risky. In fact we have done the surveys of damaged and unsafe buildings for this year and Vaishnodevi Society in Sector-6 Nerul that was found unsafe has been demolished by the authorities.”

In Mumbai centuries year old buildings collapsed but Navi Mumbai is comparatively young. So, why is it that such menace have crept into the lives of people so early, Navi Mumbai still being a developing node? “This city falls under the earth-quake prone zone. So, the new buildings should be constructed with suspensions in their foundations so that they are earthquake proof. But sadly, Navi Mumbai buildings are not constructed as per the guidelines laid down by the Roorkee University. So, the chances of its collapse automatically become more,” says PB Menon, Chairman-Ecological Society of Navi Mumbai.

Meanwhile, the authorities are not foreseeing the need for transit camps putting it last in their priority list. “There is no need of any transit camps herelike Mumbai. For emergency purposes, in case of any calamity or casualty, we have our own buildings like Vidya Mandirs or own private buildings where the victims can stay for almost a week,” says Mr. Halat, Town Planing officer. “We do not even have space for transit camps. Secondly, Navi Mumbai lands are owned by CIDCO. So, only if there is space in their plans and they allot us a given land we can start working on it. On the contrary, CIDCO PRO, Budhabhushan Gaikwad, says, “Transit camps doesn’t come under us. It’s the concern of the local self government body, CIDCO is a developing body not a planning body.”

Swati Pandey