Buildings constructed on water bodies under scanner

Kolkata: Acting upon the grievances during 'Talk to KMC' programme, Firhad Hakim, chairman of Board of Administrators, Kolkata Municipal Corporation instructed officials of the civic body to scan previous records where buildings have been constructed on

land after filling up of water bodies.

Hakim had himself received a few calls at the 'Talk to KMC' programme, where aggrieved persons informed him that they had purchased some land parcels earlier but were being denied plan sanction for construction on that land as some water body had existed there once.

"We will conduct an enquiry to find out whether any former official in the civic body had illegally sanctioned the plan on such land even after knowing that it was once a water body. If we find any irregularity, we will take action as per law. If we come across irregularity in land records, then we should rectify the same," reiterated Hakim.

According to Hakim, during the Left Front rule several water bodies were filled up particularly in the extended parts of the city and land was sold in parcels.

Constructions have taken place on such patches of land. But, now all water bodies have come under google monitoring to thwart any attempts of such filling up of ponds.

In such a scenario, when a new application of

construction on such a parcel of land is received, the records show that there was a water body in the particular area once.

He added that 50 per cent of water bodies in Behala and Thakurpukur area have been filled up illegally during the Left Front rule, disturbing the ecological balance in the area.