Mumbai: 100-year-old partially broken Malad building poses threat to locals

An aerial view of hundreds of passers-by crossing what remains of the dangerous and dilapidated Krishna Baug building at Malad West, on Wednesday afternoon. Pics/Nimesh Dave

P-North ward officials in Malad-West have partially demolished a 100-year-old structure marked for complete demolition, putting occupants, pedestrians and rail commuters at mortal risk.

The three-and-a-half storey Krishna Baug comprising eight homes and 10 shops opposite the busy Malad railway station was declared dangerous in 2019, and after several audits, was finally marked for demolition in 2021.

But on February 2, local ward officials pulled down just the residential parts and allowed the ground-floor commercial parts to stay.

A history of negligence

The BMC categories dilapidated buildings on a scale of four, C1, C2A, C2B, and C3. C1 entails immediate evacuation and demolition, C2A requires dangerous portions demolished, C2B requires structural repairs and C3 minor repairs.

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People walking in the vicinity of the dangerous structure opposite Malad railway station

But once a building is declared dilapidated, residents often commission an independent audit to try and reduce the chances of demolition. The BMC then gets another audit done, and if the matter is still contested, it is placed before a Technical Advisory Committee (TAC), whose ruling is final.

In 2019, a Kurla building was declared C1, after which the occupants got an independent audit done, which categorised it as not requiring demolitions. A few months later, it collapsed, killing 19 people. After this incident, the BMC ordered all wards to prepare a list of C1 buildings and pull them down on priority.

No lessons learned

The resultant audit declared Krishna Baug as a C1 building. In October 2020, the BMC asked the occupants to vacate the premises. The occupants, however, got an independent audit done, which declared the building as C2B. A section of occupants also moved the city civil court, where the matter is pending without any temporary relief granted.

Due to the contradicting audits, the BMC roped in IIT experts, who declared the structure dangerous. The issue went to the TAC, which declared the structure unfit for occupancy and ordered its demolition.

Homes demolished...

Last month, however, P-North ward officials vacated only the residents and demolished their homes, sparing the ground floor commercial spaces. In the weeks since, the commercial occupants have even started repair works to make the remaining
structure usable.

Experts said the half-demolished structure is a danger to both occupants and passers-by. Thousands of people use this busy approach road to the station.

Officialspeak

A P-North ward officer, who did not want to be named, said action was initiated when Disaster Management got a call about a slab collapse. "On inspection, we realised it was a C1 structure, so we demolished the dangerous wooden portions on the first and second floors. The ground-floor shop owners showed us a structural audit and requested that they be allowed to continue functioning till consent terms with the landlord are drawn up. The application is under consideration."

Officials in trouble

A retired senior BMC officer mid-day spoke to was not convinced by the BMC's explanation.

"These officials don't have powers to demolish portions of a C1 structure," said the retired official. "Once notice is issued, the entire structure needs to be pulled down. If people start using this as a precedent, it will lead to a dangerous situation in the city. If this goes to court, these BMC officials will be in trouble."

‘Why only us'

Pradeep Tiwari, homeowner, who is now living in a rented house
‘When the entire structure was declared unsafe, why were only homes pulled down and commercial parts spared?'

Raksha Mehta, 60, another resident who lost her home.
‘Business is not good and the cost of living has gone up. We now need to pay rent, too. At a time when we were looking to save more for our old age, we are spending more than earning'