TEAM HERALD
MARGAO: In an interesting development, which might raise many an eyebrow in the Commercial Capital, the Margao Municipal Council has asserted that none of its officials or engineers will be held responsible in the event of any untoward incident owing to structural failure of any building.
This has assumed significance post-Canacona building collapse, where the police have arrested Canacona Chief Officer Prashant Shirodkar and is on the lookout for two of its municipal engineers in connection with the case.
A public notice signed by MMC Chairperson Dayanand Deulkar and Chief Officer Deepali Naik to all construction licence holders and people who have obtained occupancy certificates from the civic body has made it abundantly clear that the chief officer, municipal engineers and any other official of the Council shall in no way be responsible for any civil/criminal liabilities in case of any untoward incidence or structural failure. “This shall hold good even if inadvertently some documents or structural liability certificate is not available in the records of the Council,” the notice stated.
In fact, the public notice clearly stated that the engineer or the structural engineer appointed by the licencee shall be solely responsibility for the stability of the structure, workmanship and quality of construction.
The notice further stated that “the construction licence holders of the civic body, the people who have constructed buildings based on construction licences issued by this Council in the past and the public in general to take note that they shall take all the measures so that the building being constructed or already constructed by them are structurally safe, sound and stable. They shall take adequate measures so that the construction workers and other people concerned are not at risk. Wherever necessary, they shall take guidance/opinion from experts and consultants,” the notice added.
Sources said the public notice was issued following a note put up by the officials saying that they duties of the chief officer and the municipal engineer is not only to grant construction licences and occupancy certificates, but they are involved in various other works.
such as road construction, gutters, drains, development works of the Council, municipal solid waste management related works, which is closely monitored by the High Court along with so many other works of Council.
The engineer or the structural engineer appointed by the licencee shall be solely responsibility for the stability of the structure, workmanship and quality of construction, said MMC in its notice
