PUNE: Over 100 families staying in different buildings in Ambegaon Budruk and Ambegaon Pathar were told to evacuate their flats after boulders, mud and trees crashed into the parking area of a society during heavy rain on Tuesday afternoon.
The Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) officials served notice to residents late on Tuesday night after boulders came crashing down in Viva Nirman Society in Ambegaon Budruk. No one was injured in the incident, but two residential buildings stood dangerously on the cliff of the remains of a hill.
The hill in Ambegaon Pathar and Ambegaon Budruk has almost disappeared because of continuous construction activities in the area over the years. Some buildings have come up on the hill and the land near the forest area leading to Vadgaon Budruk-Parvati hill, said Ashok Shinde, a resident of Ambegaon Pathar.
TOI on Wednesday found boulders, mud, trees and the remains of plaster in the parking area of Viva Nirman Society.
PMC: Erstwhile gram panchayat gave permission, will check legality of buildings
Abhijit Shinde, the treasurer of Viva Nirman Society, said, “Water started flowing into our society from the cliff after the rain started on Tuesday afternoon. Suddenly there was a noise near the B and C wings as boulders, mud and trees fell in its parking area from the cliff. Rainwater gushed down.”
Anil Pawar, the secretary of the society, told TOI, “A total of 46 families from B and C wings have been shifted to the society club house as residential buildings on top of the cliff in Ambegaon Pathar can fall on our buildings anytime. PMC has identified the wings as ‘dangerous’. A few residents have shifted to relatives’ places; others are searching for small flats on rent.”
The society’s chairman Amol Mote has providing food and other necessary items to the affected families staying in the club house, along with Dimple Ingle and others.
TOI visited the dangerous buildings in Ambegaon Pathar, especially in Survey No. 16/5/3. PMC officials have issued notice to residents of 12 buildings on the cliff, asking them to vacate their flats.
The residents of Balaji Park, Mayuresh Park and Samruddhi Villa admitted to have received notice from PMC officers, asking them to vacate flats. “Where will we go now? All the flats are empty now,” said Sandeep Kamble of Balaji Park, showing the PMC notice issued to him.
Pradeep Jadhav of Samruddhi Villa said, “PMC officials visited the area around 11pm on Tuesday. They gave notice to me. I did not take it.”
Amit Konde of Samruddhi Villa said, “We all are paying property tax and water bills to PMC. The buildings were constructed about 12-13 years ago, when Ambegaon Pathar was a gram panchayat. Now, they are claiming that the buildings have been illegally constructed. Why do authorities allow builders to construct such buildings. Each of the 12 four- or five-storied buildings on the cliff have 16 to 30 flats. PMC officials have served notices to 80 to 100 flat owners.”
Jadhav said, “The authorities have completely vacated Mayuresh Park. A majority of us are working people and we demand that PMC make alternative residential arrangements. The authorities and builders must construct a retaining wall near the cliff.”
Another resident of the area said, “Six months ago, the authorities constructed a metallic road from the main road of Amebgaon Pathar to the Sai Mandir area. The main road is on the uphill. Narrow lanes lead to our buildings and the cliff. The lanes were flooded on Tuesday and water came gushing down towards our building. Then the landslip occurred at Viva Nirman.”
According to PMC officials, a team from the building permission department visited the site on Wednesday. The erstwhile gram panchayat gave permission to some of the buildings near the landslip spot and their legality would be checked in due course of time, an official said.
“The residents should approach a structural auditor empanelled with PMC and conduct a structural audit of the buildings. A report of his visit and observations should be given to PMC in the next two days,” said Shridhar Yevalekar, the superintending engineer of PMC.
