Business complex to be erected in Sundhara
By Razen Manandhar
KATHMANDU, Sept 9 - Employees Provident Fund Office (EPFO) and Ward No 22 of Kathmandu Metropolitan City have recently reached a verbal understanding to provide Rs 1.6 million to a renovation committee to start building business complex just behind the capital's famous Sundhara spout.
The construction works had been stalled for 14 years following a squabble with the locals who blamed that drying of the spout was due to the construction works. The amount to be received from EPFO will be used in renovation of the stone spout, according to Ward chairman Hari Krishna Dangol.
Dangol said Friday that he would help EPFO to have the house map approved to build its complex today after the latter had agreed to pay the sum they needed to renovate the spout that has been lying useless for over a decade. "EPFO will start building its complex there very soon," he said. A renovation committee has already been formed, of which, Ward Chairman Dangol is the coordinator.
The locals stopped EPFO's building project in 1986 as the water spout started drying as soon as the digging began behind the spout. They claimed that the digging tampered the water source for the over 150 years old spout.
Engineer Saroj Basnet of WeLink Consultants said that it would start the renovation works either by finding out its real source, or by constructing wells in nearby Tebahal area or by deep-boring for the ground water. "We have produced the preliminary report. However, If we have to go for deep boring, the amount would be insufficient," he said.
The search for the water source is to start after six weeks, when EPFO will complete demolishing the existing building there.
Whereas, the locals are not happy with the proposed scheme. Srikrishna Darshandhari, a local, said Ward Office should help EPFO to have the map approved only after the problem of Sundhara is totally solved. He asked, "Who will take the responsibility if EPFO constructed the building but Sundhara remained dry?"
He said that such serious steps should have been taken only after a thorough discussion with the locals.
He also opposed pumping out underground water, saying it would destroy the historic value of Sundhara and also waste the ground water too. "Deep boring will damage the valley's geological feature and the volume of water from deep-boring will create a problem for its outlet," he said.
On the other hand, EPFO officials maintained that the drying of the spout had no relation with the building of the complex. "Still, we agreed to grant Rs 1.6 million as per the demand of the Ward Office and we also wanted to help restore the national monument," said Shashi Bikram Rana, the Department Chief of EPFO.
However, officials at the Department of Archaeology-- which takes care of the all the historic monuments of the country-- said that they had no information about the Ward Office's steps.
[Kathmandu Sunday September 10, 2000 Bhadra 25, 2057.]
Showing posts with label encroachment. Show all posts
Showing posts with label encroachment. Show all posts
Friday, September 08, 2000
1/3 houses in KMC illegal
By Razen Manandhar
KATHMANDU, Sept 7 - One third of the total mushrooming buildings in the capital city are illegal as they are not approved by the municipality. Kathmandu Municipal Corporation (KMC) claims that even among the two third of the buildings under-construction that have acquired formal approval, many have not followed the exact blue print they have registered with the office.
According to Devendra Dangol, a senior municipal engineer, only about 3100 applications have registered planned map in his office, whereas once third of that number start construction without bothering to follow any official procedure.
Even the houses with proper authorization do not care to amend their maps if they wish to add a room or two here or there. The officials add that a few daring ones even add a storey or two more than stipulated in their original maps.
"Majority of the houses built in the city are in contrary to the blue prints they produce to acquire permission for the building from the metropolis office," claims Ganesh Dhoj GC, legal officer in Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC).
GC considers the trend as a negligence fuelled due to lack of stern action against the defaulters. However, despite being aware of illegal constructions, KMC’s hands are legally bound. They can do nothing until any affected party lodges a complain. Though the number of such complains are meagre, "the complains on unauthorised construction occupy over 75 percent of all sorts of complains together," he added.
KMC’s actions are always prompted by the complains made by defaulters’ neighbours. However, the legal procedure is so clumsy and time consuming that any building or structure completes by the time even when a decree to halt the construction is issued.
KMC’s office has now stacks of such default cases which are either not pursued or not solved. There are cases since the last one decade languishing in old files of the office. Not only KMC, Kathmandu Valley Town Development Implementation Committee (KVTDIC) also has the authority to drag the wrongdoers to the court, halt construction works and even demolish illegal structures. The similar rights to two different organizations is also making the issue "everybody’s responsibility" and being neglected in many cases by the both parties.
"Unless the contradictory acts are amended or a coordination method is developed, we can’t completely change this ugly cityscape." says Suresh P Acharya, town controller of KVTDIC. Coordinator of Kathmandu Valley Mapping Programme Padma Sundar Joshi said the problem lies in the policy. "Instead of dividing the valley into more sectors and thus dividing authorities, the whole valley should be united and the government should devise a grand plan for better housing policies," he said.
However, there is a light in the tunnel. Days are coming when buildings will be made only under a widely planned ‘Building Codes’. Deputy Director General of Urban Development and Building Works Purna Kadariya said discussion with Ministry for Law to implement the ‘Building Codes’ developed in 1994 under UNDP’s assistance is about to complete. "Regulating the urban housing is a long process and it needs different components like electricity, drinking water, drainage telephone etc. Now, building code is being implemented shortly which will regulate the buildings at affordable expense," he says.
[Kathmandu Friday September 08, 2000 Bhadra 23, 2057.]
KATHMANDU, Sept 7 - One third of the total mushrooming buildings in the capital city are illegal as they are not approved by the municipality. Kathmandu Municipal Corporation (KMC) claims that even among the two third of the buildings under-construction that have acquired formal approval, many have not followed the exact blue print they have registered with the office.
According to Devendra Dangol, a senior municipal engineer, only about 3100 applications have registered planned map in his office, whereas once third of that number start construction without bothering to follow any official procedure.
Even the houses with proper authorization do not care to amend their maps if they wish to add a room or two here or there. The officials add that a few daring ones even add a storey or two more than stipulated in their original maps.
"Majority of the houses built in the city are in contrary to the blue prints they produce to acquire permission for the building from the metropolis office," claims Ganesh Dhoj GC, legal officer in Kathmandu Metropolitan City (KMC).
GC considers the trend as a negligence fuelled due to lack of stern action against the defaulters. However, despite being aware of illegal constructions, KMC’s hands are legally bound. They can do nothing until any affected party lodges a complain. Though the number of such complains are meagre, "the complains on unauthorised construction occupy over 75 percent of all sorts of complains together," he added.
KMC’s actions are always prompted by the complains made by defaulters’ neighbours. However, the legal procedure is so clumsy and time consuming that any building or structure completes by the time even when a decree to halt the construction is issued.
KMC’s office has now stacks of such default cases which are either not pursued or not solved. There are cases since the last one decade languishing in old files of the office. Not only KMC, Kathmandu Valley Town Development Implementation Committee (KVTDIC) also has the authority to drag the wrongdoers to the court, halt construction works and even demolish illegal structures. The similar rights to two different organizations is also making the issue "everybody’s responsibility" and being neglected in many cases by the both parties.
"Unless the contradictory acts are amended or a coordination method is developed, we can’t completely change this ugly cityscape." says Suresh P Acharya, town controller of KVTDIC. Coordinator of Kathmandu Valley Mapping Programme Padma Sundar Joshi said the problem lies in the policy. "Instead of dividing the valley into more sectors and thus dividing authorities, the whole valley should be united and the government should devise a grand plan for better housing policies," he said.
However, there is a light in the tunnel. Days are coming when buildings will be made only under a widely planned ‘Building Codes’. Deputy Director General of Urban Development and Building Works Purna Kadariya said discussion with Ministry for Law to implement the ‘Building Codes’ developed in 1994 under UNDP’s assistance is about to complete. "Regulating the urban housing is a long process and it needs different components like electricity, drinking water, drainage telephone etc. Now, building code is being implemented shortly which will regulate the buildings at affordable expense," he says.
[Kathmandu Friday September 08, 2000 Bhadra 23, 2057.]
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