Inhabitants of dilapidated buildings will be given a certificate of occupancy by the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC), mayor Firhad Hakim said on Friday. It will act as proof that they lived in the building before it is pulled down, he said.
The certificate is meant to instil confidence among inhabitants that they will find a place in the new structure that will come up following the demolition of the dilapidated one. Civic officials hoped it might make the process of demolishing vulnerable structures easier.
The mayor said there were 142 buildings in the Kolkata municipal area that have been identified as “very vulnerable”. Inhabitants of such structures often refuse to leave fearing they will not find a place in the new building.
“We will give the occupants of dilapidated buildings that can collapse any time a certificate of occupancy,” Hakim said. “The occupants will get the same area (in the new structure) that they are now having.” The KMC had been planning to introduce the provision of handing occupancy certificates for some time.
A bill was passed in the Assembly on Thursday seeking to amend the KMC Act and include the provision. It will now require the governor’s nod, after which the law department will publish the amended act. The municipal affairs department will then publish the date when the amendment will come into effect. Once given the occupancy certificate, tenants of dilapidated buildings will not be reluctant to move out to facilitate the demolition of the structure, civic officials said. “Now, the tenants often refuse to evacuate,” said a KMC official.
The inhabitants may build a temporary settlement in the cleared land after the structure is pulled down if there is no immediate plan to erect a new one, said Hakim. The KMC official said the modalities on how to identify the actual inhabitants will be decided later.
The KMC Act has a provision that allows the construction of additional space in buildings with many inhabitants. These are special cases where relaxations are made to the building rules so that the developer gets space to sell and make a profit after rehabilitating all old tenants.