ANOTHER tragic building collapse has claimed 27 lives because of criminal neglect by officials of some departments of the Sindh government. Whenever such a tragedy happens the Sindh chief minister orders an inquiry report be submitted by the authorities concerned. The same has happened in the recent building collapse in Golimar.

I am astonished how the officials of the Sindh Building Control Authority (SBCA) allowed a six-storey building to be constructed on an 80-yard plot and that too in a densely populated area with narrow lanes.

How come no Sindh government or Karachi city administration official took notice.

Another such building is being constructed in front of my residence in Garden East. Almost daily from my window I see construction in progress by a firm that is neither qualified nor registered with the Pakistan Engineering Council.

I have also observed that the labour contractor, instead of using a ratio of four crush and two sand for the concrete mix, was using a ratio of four sand and two crush in one bag of cement and requisite water. All of this was being done without the presence of a qualified and PEC- registered engineer or even a diploma engineer.

Owing to the poor standard of shuttering more than a quarter of the cement was falling through. I have talked to the construction crew at the site. They have told me that no consultant, architect or SBCA officer had visited the construction site.

This has become a norm for construction activity in this city.

One shudders to think what would happen if God forbid an earthquake of mild intensity hits Karachi.

The Sindh government and the high court should take immediate action.

Engr A.A.Chandani
Karachi

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ACCORDING to police, three buildings collapsed in Golimar with one of them being completely destroyed, while major part of the other two buildings was razed to ground.

Police also said that the fourth building near the three collapsed building was declared dangerous by the authorities. The additional director of the Sindh Building Control Authority (SBCA) said the building was built illegally and officers who were involved in its approval have been suspended.

He said a case would also be registered against them, adding that the Sindh government has suspended 28 SBCA officers.

The government should take steps to ensure such tragedy does not occur in the future.

Monis Salman
Karachi

Published in Dawn, March 13th, 2020