Paradise lost
Promising a paradise to the buyers of his multi-storeyed residential project in Gurugram, the builder even named the tower as Chintel Paradiso. But christening alone does not make it so. The occupants of these flats learnt it the hard way on February 10. A roof collapse from a sixth floor unit through the first one claimed the lives of two women. It reduced some homes to debris and damaged many others. The lucky ones had a narrow escape from the horrible accident and a few had a harrowing time trapped in the rubble before they could be rescued. Everyone in the building must have had sleepless nights, haunted by the tragedy.
Not only the Chintel residents, but also those living in most flats across the country or those aspiring to move into such properties are shaken today. Doubts over the quality of construction assail them too; they shudder to even think of, God forbid, a Chintel happening in their residential tower. This gnawing feeling is but natural. For, even as people have invested their lives’ savings in getting their ‘dream homes’, few could claim to have not experienced a nightmarish crack in the wall, or a leaking pipe, some distressed structure or substandard building material. The Chintel builder has now been arrested. Had he been properly taken to task a few months ago when the residents had reported the crumpling of a part of a balcony in the same building, perhaps the tower would be standing tall and sturdy. With occupants of other buildings too fearing for the safety of their lives, a rigorous and quick audit of all structures is needed.
Both the authorities responsible for ensuring that no residential or commercial structure escapes their scrutiny and the builders must share the blame for endangering the lives of people who put in their money into these projects. Any laxity in a field where safety is of prime concern should invite urgent and strict action against the culprits. Sadly, the Chintel case is not the first instance exposing greedy builders and dubious official clearances. Hopefully, it will be the last one.
