Ghaziabad Development Body asks Residents to vacate Alaknanda TowersPropertyWala.com

The Ghaziabad Development Authority (GDA) has expressed concern over the miserable condition of a multi-storey Alaknanda Towers in Vaishali. The authority has recently asked residents of the apartment to leave the building immediately until the retrofitting and renovations works completed.

In a letter dated March 6 to Alaknanda Towers Resident Welfare Agency (RWA), GDA Chief Engineer WN Singh said that Rs 3.5 crore would be needed to complete the renovation. As the agency owns some of the apartments, it is willing to pay some part. The letter also stated that RWA is fully responsible in the case of an adverse event.

Building is structurally strong-

Specifically, Ghaziabad Municipal Corporation (GMC) declared Alaknanda Towers, which has 10 floors and 79 apartments, dangerous in August 2018. GMC had said the residential complex is not safe for the residents but also for people living nearby. Thereafter, the Faculty of Engineering department at Jamia Millia Islamia University conducted a safety audit of the tower in 2019. The report said the building was structurally solid but required maintenance and retrofitting work.

However, the residents’ bodies of the complex are outraged by the GDA letter. They said the repair work was to be conducted by the authorities themselves. As the maintenance of building was not handed over to RWA, the GDA denied this claim, which was done in 2011 in the presence of RWA officials.

RWA challenged GDA-

Amit Kumar, RWA official, said, The building is constantly deteriorating and the GDA will be completely liable for any mishap or loss of life. We have also questioned the GDA stance in Allahabad High Court and also lodged the complaint with the State grievance redressal portal. If the maintenance was outsourced to RWA, how did the authority set up a fire-fighting in the apartment? Recently, it also advertised an ad for unsold flats in the society. The GDA tower has approximately 23 flats.

RWA also challenged the GDA’s claim maintenance: “Through RTI, we receive a delivery note, without any official seal and not even done with a GDA letterhead. Our RWA was first established in 2015.”

Meanwhile, a senior GDA spokesman said RWA has two options. “Either they pay for the retrofitting and maintenance work. Or they should make an agreement with a builder to construct a new tower with a higher FRA. Thus, the developer will receive additional floors to sell and the owners will receive new flats for free.