24 out of 30 malls in Gurugram may face action after the findings by Department of Town Country Planning (DTCP) showcased that these malls have flouted the building plans and compromised on safety procedures.
The most prominent malls in the city which may face the dire consequences of not following the norms are Ambience Mall -NH-8, Mega Mall, Raheja Mall,Vipul Agro Mall, MGF Metropolis, and Omax City Centre.
The DTCP have found that the malls have encroached upon the spaces set aside for safety exits, parking lots and used it for commercial purposes. Compromising on safety procedures has resulted in these malls being found ill-equipped to handle major emergencies like fire, earthquakes and stampedes.
The DTCP has uploaded the list of the malls after the inspections carried out by it in May.
Shockingly, these malls are the most prominent malls in the National Capital Region (NCR) located along National Highway-8, Sohna Road, and MG Road. In the inspection, it was found that most of the shopping outlets, restaurants, offices have been opened in the entry and exit areas and even in front of the fire fighting equipment. The basements and the open spaces in the malls have been misused by setting up security rooms, store rooms, washrooms, and monitoring rooms.
DTCP has been making scathing observations over the violation of building norms since last year the DTCP had been issuing notices to these malls however with no reply from the malls.
Finally, the DTCP officials conducted the inspections and found that areas ranging from 4,000 square feet to even Rs 1.10 lakh square feet have been encroached by the erring malls despite the warning.
"Most of the malls have set up unauthorised shops and kiosks and thereby blocked the access to escalators, lifts and entry and exit points which should be made visible for the visitors. If there is a mishap all these factors can prove to be extremely detrimental. After sending several reminders, our special team conducted inspections and found that a callous attitude continues by the management," said a senior official from DTCP. "After the inspections, we have again provided time for the malls to correct the problem areas. Failing which the DTCP will take legal action against the mall in terms of initiating the anti-encroachment drive to even closure of the malls," added the official.
A management employee of a prominent mall at MG road confirmed that there was an inspection that was carried out by DTCP officials however refused to delve detail on the encroachment of safety areas.
"Our malls have been functioning for past fourteen years. We will never try to compromise on the safety of the visitors," the official said.