The Municipal Corporation of Delhi has suspended three Building Department engineers over alleged dereliction of duty and negligence in dealing with unauthorised construction.
Ravinder Kumar, an Assistant Engineer in the Building Department, South West Zone, has been placed under suspension with immediate effect, according to orders issued by the civic body on Thursday. The suspension comes days after a paying guest accommodation collapsed in Delhi’s Satya Niketan , killing seven people. Two Junior Engineers, Suman Saurabh and Mohit Yadav, have also been suspended. This included the suspension of the Deputy Commissioner and four engineers, a day after the five-storey building housing a PG facility collapsed. The building was being used as a student paying guest accommodation. The incident has since raised questions over the safety of paying guest accommodations and the enforcement of building rules in Delhi. The Delhi High Court is also hearing petitions seeking stronger regulation and safety measures for hostels and PG accommodations following the tragedy.
The September 6 collapse killed seven people and brought scrutiny on building safety, unauthorised construction and the role of civic officials responsible for enforcing building rules. The civic body has, so far, surveyed 1,355 buildings being used as paying guest accommodations across the city, with around 27,000 student occupants.
The civic body said the officials were suspended over dereliction of duty and negligence in dealing with unauthorised construction.
The three officials are from the civic body’s South West Zone, earlier known as the Najafgarh Zone. Five South Zone officials had earlier been suspended after the Satya Niketan building collapse. It had reportedly undergone renovation work before the collapse.
The Supreme Court has asked the Delhi High Court to continue monitoring the Satya Niketan case.
The civic body has said officials responsible for dealing with unauthorised construction are required to act in accordance with prescribed rules and procedures, and those found negligent in discharging their duties will face action.
