Legal Action Likely Against Officials
by Amavasya Sirisena
In the realm of the collapsing of a five storied building under construction at Wellawatte, housing a reception hall last week, the quality, standards and safety assurances of several other buildings constructed along the canal reserve has become a major subject of discussion.Minister of Disaster Management, Anura Priyadharshana Yapa told The Sunday Leader that officers from the relevant licensing authorities such as the Colombo Municipal Council (CMC) and the Urban Development Authority (UDA), who are responsible for constructing unauthorised constructions in the buffer zone of the canal, have to be criminally prosecuted for what happened in Wellawatte.
The CMC has been accused of turning a blind eye on one hand and allowing people to carry out constructions on their own will without gaining proper approval and a clearance certificate and to also construct buildings along the bank of the canal marked as a buffer zone area.
The Minister claimed that the entire responsibility of the collapsing of the Wellawatte building as well as the unauthorised constructions that have been taken so far is in the hands of the CMC and the officers of the UDA since it is their duty to inspect the quality and the condition of the buildings.
The Sunday Leader was told by the Municipal Commissioner and officer implementing the powers and function of the CMC, V. K. A. Anura that the collapsed building, which has been identified as a five-story building, housing a reception hall named ‘The Excellency’ as an unauthorised construction built without the approval of the CMC.
He stated that the authority to take appropriate legal action against the owner of the collapsed building is currently vested upon the Urban Development Authority and he has been informed that the powers in proceeding with legal actions will be vested upon the CMC. Accordingly, the Commissioner of the CMC states that he is in a position to take legal action against the guilty party only after he gets the authority and power to do so.
Meanwhile, it is crucial to highlight the fact that the 6.5 meter land area on both sides of the bank of the canal is allocated and named as the canal reserve area prohibiting any construction. However no one could actually see whether there is any buffer area on the bank of the canal since it is hard to find a vacant place.
Minister Yapa said that he had taken steps to assign the National Building Research Organization (NBRO) to send letters to the CMC including other relevant institutions requesting a report on the suitability and feasibility of the constructions. Yet, neither the CMC nor any government institution has responded with any report on the quality and the standards of the buildings.
It is also important to highlight as to why the CMC and UDA did not take steps to assign the ample amount of officials that they have in order to inspect all the unauthorised constructions, not only in Colombo city but also in other areas of the country.
The CMC Commissioner said that he has not been given the opportunity to take action on any unauthorised construction since he took office in 2015.
He says it is difficult for the CMC to get involved into each and every unauthorised construction taking place with the amount of employees they have. Therefore, he requested the public and the citizens of the country to inform and reveal any kind of unauthorised construction taking place so that they could proceed with legal action against the accused.
He further reiterated that most of the time the neighbourhood is either aware or unaware of such unauthorised constructions going on in their respective areas. “Instead they keep supporting such deeds without complaining,” he added.
Based on an outcome of a survey conducted by them the UDA has identified hundreds of unauthorised constructions within the city of Colombo.
The CMC Commissioner stated that they have taken steps to take action against all the unauthorised constructions on the sides of the bank of the canal. He stated that licensing and issuing of licence is carried out by the UDA whereas the provincial institutions get the authority from the UDA to proceed with the arrangements.
Mrs. N. Balasubramaniyam, Divisional Secretary of the Dehiwala Divisional Secretariat said, “They have not got the approval from neither Sri Lanka Land Reclamation and Development Corporation (SLRDC) nor National Building Research Organization (NBRO).”
Nevertheless, the Dehiwala Divisional Secretariat is still waiting for the response of the Colombo Municipal Council (CMC), whether they have given the approval for the plan or not, to which the CMC has replied in getting back with a report after conducting necessary researches on the matter.
Meanwhile, the government says legal action will be taken against those responsible for the Wellawatte building collapse.
Minister of Megapolis and Western Development Champika Ranawaka said that the Wellawatte building, which collapsed, was an illegal construction.
Ranawaka said that there are 1,800 illegal constructions between Wellawatte and Bambalapitiya.