KARACHI:
Digging away next to the foundations of a building is just asking for trouble. But this is common, espcially in Saddar, where excavation for mega projects weaken adjacent buildings, leaving them tottering ominously.
One example is the New Misquita Garden - a small community project constructed half-a-century ago. Alongside its west wall, an unnamed and unidentified 11-storey plaza is going up like deemak or woodworm, threatening to topple the Garden. The plaza is being constructed opposite Gul Plaza, between Gaziani Shopping Mall and Patrick’s palace, behind M A Jinnah Road without so much as a concrete plan in place.
The Garden houses about 124 families, a school and a church. Since the plaza project began four months ago, digging has brought down an electricity pole, disrupting the residential block’s supply for seven days. The guard house at the entrance crumbled as did the boundary wall. The water and gas pipelines ruptured. The lack of a boundary wall has led to an increase in muggings to add to the neighbourhood’s woes. But what terrifies the residents the most is the prospect of their building collapsing. They point out cracks.
A resident of New Misquita Garden who lives on the ground floor took The Express Tribune around to survey the damage. Her backyard’s metal gate hung off its hinges, and one of the three steps that led inside was missing. Below the stairs, drainage pipes all along the wall lay exposed. The residents still do not know what the new project is next door, they just know that it is a commercial project with 11 floors and a ramp. Another elderly resident explained how the colony would now be sandwiched between a parking plaza on the east and the new plaza on the west side. He lives on one of the higher floors and his house’s landing and entrance would be blocked by the plaza’s wall. “It’s not just the suffocation, we have our daughters and children coming in and out and we don’t know what sort of people will be at the plaza,” he said.
The building is also creeping on to their property as their boundary wall is being put up about three feet away. The residents demand that it be shifted to at least 10 feet.
Roland D’Souza, an engineer who works with city watchdog Shehri, said that according to the law, you are supposed to make sure that adjacent buildings are stable during deep excavation. The Karachi Building and Town Planning Regulation 2002 Rule 8-7 states that “no excavation, dewatering, earthwork or demolition of a building which is likely to affect the stability of an adjacent building shall be started or continued unless steps are taken before and during the work to prevent the collapse or damage of any adjacent building”. In 2009, it was precisely this rule that was violated in Kharadar where a building next to a construction site collapsed, killing over 20 people.
Residents claim that despite having complained thrice and having negotiated with the plaza owner, there has been no response. The three letters they sent to the Nabi Bux police, the Karachi Building Control Authority (KBCA) controller and the new building constructer were all ignored.
The building owner, Haji M Latif, refused to meet with the residents or even share his master plan. The residents then turned to the Sindh Building Control Authority but were turned away once again as the project does not have a master plan yet. “This is illegal in itself as you cannot start construction work without a complete plan,” D’Souza pointed out.
He explained that the issue is not just limited to this one building as there has been an increase in high-rise constructions all over the city. “The higher the building, the deeper its foundations go and the greater are the chances of an adjacent building being affected if proper measures are not taken,” he explained. “The MCB Tower (the tallest building in Pakistan), for example, was built while keeping a proper distance from surrounding buildings.”
KBCA chief controller Manzoor Qadir, to whom the residents’ complaint letters were addressed, claimed that he did not recognise the project location. He said that this was the first he had heard of the problem and was immediately assiging an inspection team to address the issue.
He said that KBCA has rules and does its best to make sure that they are followed. “We can stop or seal any construction that is being built against the law,” he explained. “I will make sure that all appropriate precautionary measures are taken for the project.”
Under the fear, there is a feeling of resentment growing among the residents. They feel that they are being discriminated against. “This used to be a wonderful place for us and our families, we enjoyed complete freedom. But today we are fighting to protect our own property with nobody to listen to our complaints.”
Published in The Express Tribune, July 10th, 2011.
COMMENTS (16)
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@old resident misquita garden: Point taken..Thanks
To Mr Longstanding,
so if you are not a Pakistani, then you would not understand once again, We all know that there is a lot of persecution of the minorities in pakistan, but we still hope and pray that God will guide the people of pakistan and let them see the light, as how we all lived as one people, when Quaid-e-Azam 1st built this country, we as minorities have worked side by side with the rest of the nation to built a better Pakistan, it is sad to see things like this, but instead of passing sarcastic comments, and saying we are spies and other things show some compassion, all the churches you see in karachi and all over pakistan of which some are a 100 years old are still standing, but by you passing remarks like you do is only encouraging the extremist to do more harm to the minorities, so kindly choose your words carefully before you say something, My heart goes out to the people of Misquita Gardens and D blocks in particular, as i was a resident of that block not long ago, god bless you all and keep you in his care, remember keep your faith and stand strong and there will be a positive outcome on this situation, and to Mr Longstanding God bless you also and I pray that something like this does not happen to you or your family, being the compassionate Christian people we are .
take care
Hope it works out for you!!!
Wow Long Standing strikes back to justify :p
@New Misquita Garden resident: For Christ Sake....Either u are not a Christian... or have a horrid understand of simple English.... To clarify.. I am 'not' a Pakistani. I am 'not' a muslim and I do not follow Islam. The first post by me was written in a satarical vein and if viewed with a correct understanding of English is sympathetic towards you.. But alas you did not read in between and lines or read the first 2 and went amok.....
Me and Jihadi.. That was the best joke I ever heard in my life..... good one... entertain me more.... I hope you read both my posts above and get to understand what I mean..
I completely understand the plight of minorities in Pakistan, and in spite of u thinking me to be an ignorant fool.. I am not... Thanks and God Bless.
@ old resident misquita garden.
Well said. I hope this puts some sence into Mr. Long Standing.
this is for Mr longstanding,
The Misquita Gardens, came up long before you were Born friend,it has History and a lot of fond memories for a lot of people living there as well as who have moved away, But being the Ignorant Moron you are, I am sure you would not know or understand the sentiments of the people who live there.
It is people like you and your idiotic thinking that has ruined Pakistan, not the minorities, we are hard working people, while you i am sure do not even have a job.
but being the compassionate people, we pray for you that God would give you the wisdom to feel the pain and suffering of other pakistanis.
@New Misquita Garden resident: Truly Spoken
@Long Standing:
Spies? Seriously? It surprises me how dense and shallow some people can be.
Why are you mentioning something that has nothing to do with the above problem?
I'm a resident of New Misquita Garden and I know I have been through since this construction has started. Why would you care?
We were without electricity and water for 2 whole weeks, our boundary wall, guard room, the main gate and our main electrical pole collapsed. Residents evacuated from the building with the fear that it would collapse - no security in your own home. This article was written to get our voices heard.
Are you still going to sit there and belt out foolish and hurtful comments?
For those who have been supportive and understanding, may God bless you.
@Invader... "Wish you were you in the shoes of the people going through this problem “Long Standing” ... that is one curse I dont want to have.... A minority that too in Pakistan..... Now Way...
I am not judging any1.. Its just my opinion from what I see happening in Pakistan from the eyes of Pakistan Media.... Though I may sound sarcastic....pessimistic or downright 'Indian' tell me reasons that I should not feel so.... or opine so.... Religion is oh-so overpowering in Pakistan.. There is not a single post .. I repeat not a single post without Islamic overtones or anti-American sentiments....
Wish you were you in the shoes of the people going through this problem "Long Standing" then you would realize, anyways you have no authority to judge anyone and to remind you America is not a christian country.
@Saif: Hope that the unfortunate guys have similar minded neighbors like you...
This is sad indeed !!! Islam never taught hatered with humans. This is unjust and should me dealt with justice!!! To whatever religion/ sect the residents belong, being unjust is never a way according to the teachings of islam...
"The Garden houses about 124 families, a school and a church.." A CHURCH !!!!!!!! Wakeup guys.. find an another house to stay.... you are a unwanted minority and that too Christian....American Spies...... Nobody gonna listen to you..... Sad... Best of Luck!