Sovan Chatterjee stops construction on reclaimed land, show-causes officials

Mayor Sovan Chatterjee on Tuesday stopped the construction of a building which was coming up 

on a reclaimed land and issued show-cause notices to two officials of Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) and architect of the proposed building.

He also scrapped the building plan which was sanctioned by the civic authorities. He said stern action would be taken against them if they failed to give reply to the show-cause notice properly.

Chatterjee on Tuesday visited the plot at 75, Banamali Naskar Road situated in his ward (131). He said as per the satellite photograph kept with the KMC, the plot was described as a pond and “under no circumstances will it be allowed to be filled up to make room for a building.” He said that the KMC had received complaints against plots in Maniktala which had come up on reclaimed land. “We have satellite photographs of plots and we will go by that. The plots that have been filled up will be brought back to the original status.” He said that the civic officials had been issued show-cause notices and the architect who had submitted the plan of the building in KMC had also been show-caused.

Despite his busy schedule, Chatterjee visits his ward everyday and listens to the grievances of people. This has been practice since he became a Councillor way back in 1985. Between 1985-90 when CPI(M) workers had been filling up water bodies in Behala to make room for buildings, he had waged a lone war raising the issues in the monthly meeting. Though he was the youngest Councillor in KMC, he had earned the respect of Left Front Councillor and became very close to the then Mayor Kamal Basu and the then member, Mayor in Council in charge of building Rathin Das Sharma.

Between 1985 and 2000, CPI(M) workers had filled up thousands of ponds in Behala, Jadavpur and Garden Reach to make room for highrise buildings. Tall buildings came on narrow roads.

After becoming Mayor, he took stringent action and did not allow construction of structures on reclaimed land. Recently, the KMC cancelled the plan of a building which was being constructed on reclaimed land.