Kolkata civic body plans to Rs 1 lakh fine

Next time a builder is found guilty of allowing stagnant water at a construction site, s/he may have to shell out Rs 1 lakh as fine. The Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) has proposed the penalty for developers who flout dengue and malaria-prevention guidelines and fail to clear the construction site of stagnant water and debris. Owners of residential buildings won’t be spared either. Depending on the nature of negligence, an owner of a residential building may have to pay up to Rs 10,000 for not following anti-dengue guidelines. Under the present set up, KMC’s health department can impose a fine of up to Rs 1,000 against an errant builder or an individual for flouting the rules. The department has prepared a draft for amendment of the civic rules related to prevention of dengue, malaria and other mosquito-borne diseases. In the draft, the civic body has proposed measures like imposition of penalty, or issuing a ‘stop work’ notice towards an under-construction building if the developer or an individual fails to clear stagnant water or construction wastes that could be potential mosquito-breeding grounds. The draft has been sent to the state municipal affairs department for amendments to the present rules. Underlining the need to impose heavy fines on real estate developers, a KMC health department official held a section of realtors responsible for the outbreak of dengue in Kasba, Garfa Jadavpur, Golf Green, Bijoygarh, Bansdroni, Behala, Bhowanipore and large areas off the Eastern Metropolitan Bypass last year. “We had raided construction sites in areas where dengue was severe. Despite receiving notices from us, the errant realtors did not drain out the stagnant water or clean the site. This dampened our spirit to undertake anti-dengue drives in these areas. This year we shall not bow down to any sort of defiance,” another health department official said.