One of the unsafe buildings in the port town.
VASCO
With around 30 unsafe and dilapidated buildings in the jurisdiction of Mormugao Municipal Council (MMC), the lives of occupants and pedestrians are at grave risk in different parts of the port town.
While several efforts have been made by the MMC and Vasco MLA Krishna Salkar, dozens of unsafe buildings – some private and some belonging to the MMC itself – are in a precarious state and serve as a stark reminder to the people of the risk they pose.
Many of these buildings have had incidents of concrete pieces crashing down during the monsoons, making the situation far more dangerous.
While the MMC has always been debating and discussing on the demolition of unsafe buildings, Vasco MLA Krishna Salkar had raised concerns about public safety in the assembly session after he was elected as the MLA.
In the past, the MMC had been issuing notices to many owners of the private buildings which lie in dilapidated and dangerous conditions, but nothing seems to have changed, endangering the lives of occupants and innocent pedestrians as well.
Some of the unsafe buildings are right in the heart of the city and have a flourishing business activity with shops at the ground floor or basement. Some unsafe buildings are unoccupied but pose a danger to the people as the buildings have begun developing cracks in its structures.
According to sources, there were around 30 unsafe buildings, some of which were private while some belong to the MMC itself.
"In the past, MMC has issued notices to all owners and occupants of the buildings and even threatened to seal the area but nothing has happened,” said a source.
“Every time some concrete pieces come crashing down, the MMC sends its person for inspections and later issues notices, but neither the owner nor the occupants cooperate with the council.”
“The lives of innocent people can be at huge risk in the tug of war between owners and occupants because some buildings are over 45 years old. Neither are owners maintaining these buildings, nor are the occupants bothered.”
Incidentally, one dilapidated building is right outside the Vasco police station and there have been many incidents of concrete pieces falling down, some missing people by a whisker.
“The proximity of these dilapidated buildings to the main government offices makes it all the more dangerous for the large number of people visiting these offices on a daily basis," said the source.
In the recent past, Salkar managed to demolish a dilapidated building belonging to the MMC in May 2023.
"The building was totally unsafe as it was along the busy Swatantra Path in the heart of the city and pieces of concrete would fall regularly on the footpaths. The MMC had taken a resolution to demolish the building and there was no major issue because it was not a private building,” Salkar had said at the time.
“After the building is demolished, the MMC will take a call on how to use the vacant prime land in the heart of the city.”
