Post-fire: BMC asks MHADA to take a call on Kothari Mansion
The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) has put the ball in Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority’s (MHADA) court, asking what appropriate action should be taken with regard to Kothari Mansion, a Grade II heritage building, a part of which collapsed in a fire on June 9.
A senior civic official said that it is now up to the development authority to either demolish, or repair the building, after obtaining all the required permissions from the heritage committee of the corporation. A portion of the building, where the famous restaurant ‘Light of Asia’ is located, collapsed due to the fire.
The BMC mentioned that the entire building, which falls in the ‘most dangerous’ category, might collapse at any point of time. The building was vacated by its occupants four years ago but was not demolished. “We have sent a letter to MHADA asking them to take necessary action as soon as possible. It is up to them to decide whether the entire building should be demolished or repaired. It is an iconic building, so if they are going to demolish it, they have to seek permission from the heritage committee,” said Kiran Dighavkar, assistant commissioner of A Ward.
The letter also mentioned that A ward has issued a noobjection certificate for repairs to the building in favour of NOC-holders, and it is the duty of NOC holders to take precautionary measures to safeguard the building.
MHADA officials stated that it would take action soon after receiving the report on the building collapse. “We have not yet received the collapse report. However, we will take a decision as soon as we receive it,” said a senior executive engineer from MHADA’s Mumbai Building Repair and Reconstruction board.