DyCM: Tragedy an eye opener, state govt planning stringent safety law

Dharwad: Stung by the disaster caused by the collapse of an under-construction commercial complex here, which resulted in death of 16 persons, the state government is mulling bringing in stringent legislation to ensure safety in public places.
Deputy chief minister G Parameshwara, who visited the crash site in Kumareshwar Nagar here on Saturday, said it was clear that the negligence on part of the structural engineer, contractor, builders and town planning officials was responsible for the building’s collapse.

The Deputy CM said the incident was an eye opener for the government and calls for immediate action. Apart from conducting an inquiry and punishing the guilty, there is a need to take concrete steps to prevent any such disaster in the future, he said.

“For this, a stringent legislation that stipulates safety norms to be followed while constructing buildings and severe punishment for any violation of the norms by the builders or officials will be enacted,” Parameshwara said adding that the matter will be taken up during the next assembly session.

The Public Places safety Act is there but its implementation is lax, the DCM said. He said that in the case of the building collapse in Dharwad, there were clear indications a week before that the building had developed cracks and it could cause damage. “The contractors and builders, took the warning lightly and that led to the major disaster” Parameshwara said.

Five persons including an architect and builders have been arrested and stern action will be taken against them. To a query on political pressure on officials to give building permission, Parameshwara said that officials cannot play with the lives of people by giving certificates to poor quality projects. Public safety should be given priority and there should not be any compromise in safety standards, he added.

“If officials are pressurized by politicians, let them inform the government in writing and stern action will be taken howsoever influential the politician is,” he said.

Minister R V Deshpande said HDMC has initially announced a compensation of Rs 2 lakh each to the families of the deceased and the government will bear the medical expenses of the injured.