Regret damage, says KMRC official; residents say have lost all faith

Kolkata: Kolkata Metro Rail Corporation (KMRC) will start pulling down three old buildings that have developed cracks in Bowbazar on Monday.

Among the three, demolition work of two is scheduled to start from Monday and the other one from Tuesday.

On the other hand, residents of those houses agitated during an interactive season and said they have no faith in the Metro authority.

Expressing regret over the damage caused to the residential buildings in Bowbazar here during underground work for the East-West Metro line, C N Jha, the managing director of KMRC, on Sunday assured all assistance to those affected.

Jha, during a meeting with the affected residents and North Kolkata MP Sudip Bandyopadhyay, stated that six or seven months hence, following the completion of underground work in the area, an agency will be appointed for construction and repair of the affected houses.

Along with Sudip, MLA Nayna Bandyopadhyay and local councillor Biswarup Dey were also present.

Sudip said: "We are going to sit again with the KMRC after the Jadavpur University submits a report."

Nayna said that it is only normal for the residents to have misgivings, many of whom have been living there for generations.

Residents of Durga Pituri Lane on Sunday demanded written assurance from the KMRC as it is alleged that the Metro authority has failed to fulfill the commitment till date. A resident alleged that after the cracks developed again none of the KMRC officials or any employee went to his house to witness the situation.

Some of the aggrieved residents, who had to shift to hotels with families in the wake of the cracks that have developed on their houses on May 11, registered their concerns over the work being undertaken by the KMRC, noting that damage to homes, caused by tunnelling work for Metro, were recorded in 2019, too.

"We are extremely sad about what happened. We also have families and know what it feels like to stay at some place away from our own home," Jha told the residents.

Meanwhile, KMRC authorities have reportedly got in touch with IIT Roorkee for a survey. Residents demanded an explanation about why Roorkee was approached. KMRC officials claimed that they will follow the Jadavpur University recommendation. But they are approaching IIT Roorkee for technical guidance in the overall project. KMRC authorities claimed that these three buildings are very risky and need to be demolished immediately. However, the affected residents got angry and demanded assurances from the KMRC in writing as they have no faith left in the officials.

Geologists in the city pointed out that KMRC did not consider the underground water table which should have been followed while constructing the tunnel. Once the aquifer is damaged, it affects the foundation of old buildings. The KMRC authority should have consulted with geo-technical engineers and sought their assistance before starting construction of the tunnel, they said.

"There is a clay layer and no problem developed while constructing the tunnel under River Hooghly. Vast areas of Central Kolkata are situated on the distributaries of River Hooghly and a slightest mistake will cost dearly to the Metro authorities. The buildings in Bowbazar are more than a century old and primitive methods had been followed to construct them. KMRC should have kept this in mind. Also, if water seepage is not stopped, it will pose a serious threat in the construction of the tunnel," said a senior geologist in the city.