The Haryana government has set up a committee to examine the structural strength of buildings in the state, including those in the national capital region. The information was given by Haryana Chief Secretary Sanjeev Kaushal in his inaugural address to a two-day Urban Development Conclave in Gurugram.
Kaushal made the statement days after the sequential collapse of drawing-room roofs of a flat from the sixth floor to the first floor in a highrise in the city, in which two women residents of the building were killed and a senior central government officer was critically injured.
Haryana has formed a special structural engineering committee for dealing with structural issues of residential properties, the chief secretary said.
He also added that the state government is trying to evolve a mechanism to ensure that allottees get quality construction as Gurugram and Faridabad are important NCR cities and the issues of urbanisation need to be resolved.
He said urbanisation also involves providing electricity, drinking water and transportation in cities besides ensuring quality construction of buildings there.
We have to ensure that the NCR region is developing as per the people’s expectations, he said.
Presiding over the inaugural session of the conclave, Housing and Urban Affairs Secretary Manoj Joshi of the central government appreciated the conclave’s agenda, saying it is very comprehensive and covers all aspects of urbanisation.
He said it is Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s dream that every family should have a roof over its head.
The Prime Minister believes that urbanisation will accelerate the development of the country in the coming 20 years, he said, while expressing concern over the unplanned urbanisation in small towns.
Seeking to assure that full cooperation would be given for the betterment of Haryana in NCR planning, Joshi said employment generation should also be included in urban planning.
Panchkula-based state’s RERA Chairman Rajan Gupta said Haryana’s urbanisation level is at 35 per cent, a notch above the country’s average of 32 per cent.
He said urbanisation is under pressure today and it is necessary to identify the reasons behind it and find a solution.
During the conclave, Haryana’s Additional Chief Secretary Devender Singh of the Town and Country Planning Department gave a detailed presentation of the extent of urbanisation in Haryana and said the real estate and urbanisation are again on the path of growth after the Covid pandemic.
He said Gurugram has the highest number of new launches of real estate in the NCR which is 51 per cent of the entire NCR region.
