SMC officials under scanner for allowing illegal constructions in Srinagar

Srinagar, Mar 18: Government has ordered an enquiry against the officials of Srinagar Municipal Corporation (SMC) for allegedly allowing “illegal construction” in Karan Nagar area of Srinagar.

Deeraj Gupta, Principal Secretary to Government Housing and Urban Development Department has appointed Farooq Ahmad Rather, Director Urban Local Bodies, Kashmir to hold an enquiry into the allegations against several SMC officials for allowing violation and facilitate illegal constructions in Karanagar.

As per the order, the five accused SMC officials who facilitated the unlawful construction include Sofi Mohammad Akhbar, the then ward officer, Bilal Ahmad Baba, Junior building inspector, Hakim Aijaz Ali, the then Chief Enforcement officer, Khurshid Ahmad Mir, the than Enforcement officer and Nisar Ahmad Shah, the Additional Enforcement officer.

The enquiry officer has to submit the report within 30 days along with his recommendations.

Over the years illegal construction has been serious concern in the Kashmir valley to the state government.

Several allegations have come up that illegal constructions have been made in some areas of the Srinagar’s old city in connivance of the concerned officials.

In the past also, SMC officials has allegedly approved plan and facilitated illegal construction in the Karan nagar area.

An official of the Housing and Urban Development Department said that thousands of illegal constructions have come up in Srinagar and Jammu districts over the years.

The state cabinet in 2017 approved a policy on illegal structures in twin capital cities of the state and for Katra town. In the policy, ceiling has been fixed for regularisation of such structures after imposing hefty penalty on the violators while as major violations of land use and building bye-laws will face demolition.

The government also formulated two separate committees headed by divisional commissioners of each region to decide on illegal constructions in Srinagar and Jammu. While for Katra, the Deputy Commissioner Reasi led committee was to decide on illegal constructions built before December 2016.

An official of the Housing and Urban Development Department said that thousands of illegal constructions have come up in Srinagar and Jammu districts over the years.

The official said a high-level official committee constituted by the government in 2009 to report on master plan violations, had identified and compiled a comprehensive report of around 3000 illegal structures in the Srinagar city alone.

The official that the mandate of the committees was to decide on illegal constructions raised up over the years.

“The committees was to decide whether any illegal construction built before December 2016 could be regularised or not. The non-regularised constructions was to be demolished by the Srinagar Municipal Corporation, Jammu Municipal Corporation and district administration Reasi in Katra town,” he said.

As per the policy, only 50% of such violations will be regularized after obtaining penalty from the violators and by enforcing rectification wherever feasible. Violations beyond 50% was to be demolished through the enforcement wing of respective agencies.

Similarly, only 25% of the land use violations was to be regularized after charging hefty penalty from the violators while as remaining violations will be demolished.