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Drones to detect who’s building it right and who’s not
View(s):Drones will take to the sky in Colombo city to detect illegal constructions within Colombo city, an official said.
The three-month long survey would be jointly launched by The Urban Development Authority (UDA), Colombo Municipal Council ( CMC) , Sri Lanka Land Reclamation Development Corporation (SLLRDC ) and Department Of Census And Statistics, UDA Chairman, Jagath Munasinghe said.
The initial stage will focus mainly on buildings that obstruct the 6m reservation area on either side of drainage canals.These constructions have been identified as one of the main reasons for floods following heavy rains, Mr. Munasinghe told the Sunday Times. Additionally, structures that block byroads and lanes and buildings that have made extensions and that were not in the originally approved plan will also be surveyed.
Following the detection the owners of structures considered illegal would be given 14 days to produce the original plan approved by the CMC or the UDA failing which the structure would be deemed as unauthorised. The owner would be then given a grace period of seven days to demolish (??) the structure and if he /she fails to do so the owner would be sued and the building demolished.
The UDA Chairman said they believed that there were around 10,000 such constructions within the city.
Elaborating on steps to be taken to ensure the safety of new constructions he said since UDA authorisation is necessary for a building over 4,000 sq ft area, the Authority would monitor the building process every six months. Mr. Munasinghe said two new conditions have been introduced by the Authority — approval from a chartered architect and chartered engineer.
Officials from the Institution of Engineers and the Institute of Architects will also have to make regular visits to the sites.
Mr Munasinghe told the The Sunday Times that only after an engineer from the UDA,too, examines the safety of the site following the completion of a building would the certificate of conformity be issued which is necessary to request for electricity and water supplies.
| Wellawatte building: Police call for report from Analyst’s Dept. Police have called for a report from the Government Analyst’s Dept. following the collapse of the multi-storeyed building in Wellawatte, as part of an ongoing investigation. Superintendent of Police Rohan Dias said that the passport of the owner of the building has been impounded by courts, although he was granted bail. Initial investigations have revealed that the building had not been insured, while further investigations are underway to see whether the construction was built with prior approval by the UDA and CMC and whether the site architect and engineer had monitored the building process, he said. | |