Choked sewer pipes, no parking space: Downside of houses on stilts in Faridabad

Tribune News Service

Bijendra Ahlawat

Faridabad, May 20

Pressed for space in densely populated sectors here, residents continue to oppose the “stilt plus four floors” policy.

Resident Welfare Associations (RWAs) have said the policy is not suited for congested sectors in Faridabad and, hence, must be scrapped. It should be implemented in newly developed areas which have a better civic infrastructure, they say.

Residents at receiving end

The construction of stilt-plus-four-floor buildings in densely populated sectors has wreaked havoc. Civic amenities have taken a hit. Old houses have developed cracks. Parking space has shrunk. In brief, residents are at the receiving end. Ravi Singla, retired govt officer

“The construction of stilt-plus-four-floor buildings in densely populated sectors has wreaked havoc. Civic amenities have taken a hit. Choked sewer pipes and poor water supply have become the order of the day. Old houses in the vicinity of stilt-plus-four-floor buildings have developed cracks. In brief, residents are at the receiving end,” said Ravi Singla, a retired government officer.

He further said parking space had shrunk. “It has become difficult to park vehicles on internal roads that are only nine metres wide,” Singla added.

Bhoodev Kumar, who resides in Sector 8, spent Rs 15 lakh on the repairs of his newly purchased house that was damaged by the construction of a stilt-plus-four-floor building in the neighbourhood.

He noted that stilt-plus-four-floor buildings had mostly come up in sectors where the size of plots was up to 250 sq yard. Residents claimed the situation was no less than a civic mess in Sectors 3, 4, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 16, 18 and 29.

DP Sharma, whose single-storey house in Sector 16 was damaged after a stilt-plus-four-floor building was constructed in the neighbourhood, had filed a complaint to the authorities. To this day, he awaits action on his complaint.

It is alleged that no feasibility survey was conducted before implementing the policy in sectors, where houses have a common wall of just nine inches.

Dharmender Kaushik, president, RWA, Sector 17, and NK Garg of the Confederation of RWAs described the policy as a threat to the living standards of residents in urban sectors. “The policy is aimed at benefiting the real estate mafia,” Kaushik alleged.

Sumer Singh, a member of the Residents Welfare Federation, said: “The policy can be implemented in new sectors, where the authorities must ensure better civic amenities.”

A senior district official said, “It is the government’s prerogative to make a decision on the policy. The policy will be implemented in letter and spirit.”

Civic mess in Faridabad

• Stilt-plus-four-floor buildings have mostly come up in sectors where the size of plots is up to 250 sq yard
• Residents claim the situation is no less than a civic mess in Sectors 3, 4, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 16, 18 and 29
• It is alleged that no feasibility survey was conducted before implementing the policy

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