Secretary JMC & Incharge BOCA Authority Channi Himmat while replying to RTI Application filed in this regard vide No. JMC/CEO/68-69 dated 28-4-2023 claimed attaching violations reports but these violations reports were nor relevant and didn’t pertain to site ¾ Channi Himmat and thus openly proving her patronage to owner
JMC didn’t take any action against owner after serving statutory notice to owner and after taking undertaking that owner will not raise commercial construction and will raise construction only as per approved site plan and as a result of which the owner constructed three violated floors without observing mandatory setbacks
GY CORRESPONDENT
jammu, may 10
Jammu Municipal Corporation is deliberately allowing unauthorized constructions in Municipal areas to secure their vested interests. Despite bringing violations timely and properly into kind notice of JMC enforcement staff along with pictures, no action is taken against violators. This is evident from the fact that this Newspaper published a detailed story along with pictures indicating serious violations of basement and three floors without maintaining setbacks dated 31-3-2023 that one Dr. Ashok Kumar Saraf s/o Rattan Chand Saraf owner of residential plot No. 3 in Sector-4 Channi Himmat Housing Board Colony measuring 50×100 Sqft on main road of Channi Himmat Housing Board Colony that the owner against approved site plan first constructed basement measuring 2000 Sqft, ground floor 4000 Sqft including porch area, first floor 4000 Sqft, 2nd floor 3000 Sqft without maintaining setbacks and raising construction beyond approved site plan vide No. 895/JMC/BS/2022 dated 18-7-2022. According to approved site plan, the owner was allowed ground floor 200.8 Sqm (2161 Sqft) , porch area 8.4 Sqm (90 ft) ,first floor 174.4 Sqm (1877 Sqft) and 2nd floor 133.5 Sqm (1437 Sqft). The owner was duty bound to leave front 6.1 mtr(20ft) ,rear side 4.7 mtr (15 ft), side-1 left side 2mtr( 6.50 ft) ,side-2 right side, 3 mtr (10 ft) with height of building fixed 34 ft excluding Mumty with height of plinth 2.6 ft from road level. However when owner was constructing basement, the locals strongly protested against it and JMC under public pressure served owner non-statutory notice to owner asking owner to explain nature of construction he is raising instead of serving BOCA notice to kill the time and allow owner to continue with commercial construction in residential area but no follow-up taken. This is evident from the fact when statutory notice was served to owner, he had by then raised ground floor covering nearly 4000 Sqft on existing basement. The owner however replied to statutory notice vide letter No.JMC/CEO/748-51 dated 9-9-2022 that he has already produced undertaking on affidavit No.INJK80175138903424U dated 5-9-2022 in this regard that he will raise only residential construction as per approved residential site plan and will never use residential site for commercial purpose.But it was a mere eyewash as the owner continued raising construction of Nursing Home as the owner by profession a doctor. JMC surprisingly after receiving undertaking didn’t take action against owner and meantime the owner continued raising commercial construction making land use change from residential to commercial with help of then enforcement Inspector Varun Kesar deputed in Ward-50.
As per reliable sources, the owner strike a deal with JMC enforcement staff who offered him their unfair patronage in lieu of huge illegal gratification and became mum and mute spectator to such a huge violative construction making land use change from residential to commercial beyond approved site plan without maintaining mandatory setbacks.
JMC very conveniently ignored lies in undertaking by owner duly attested by Executive Magistrate 1st class Jammu dated 5-9-2022 claiming that no commercial building or any commercial activity is proposed at the premises and also that no basement has been planned or would be constructed at the premises. The owner himself contradict his remarks by saying in the undertaking that that the base bed for the pillars and plinth of proposed residential construction has been done from 12 ft below the actual ground level due to suggestions by structural Engineer to make a solid foundation for the ground+ 2 floors residential structure keeping in mind the loose mud base at the plot.
As a result of this undertaking full of lies, JMC stopped further proceedings into the case and as a result of which the owner constructed ground floor 4000 Sqft including Porch area, first floor 4200 Sqft, 2nd floor 3000 Sqft. The owner didn’t observe mandatory setbacks as owner left only 4 ft from backside against 15 ft, left side-1-3 ft against 6.5 ft and the owner was duty bound to leave 10 ft from side-2nd against 10 ft the side facing existing residential neighboring residential house blocking their ventilation and sunlight. Similarly the owner didn’t construct porch area as was mentioned in approved site plan and constructed ground and first floor equal in size against approved site plan. In this regard an RTI application was filed in this regard dated 23-3-2023 along with pictures of violative construction indicating commercial construction without maintaining setbacks beyond approved residential site plan seeking photocopies of violations reports as submitted by Enforcement Inspector Varun Kesar from 18-7-2022 to 5-3-2022 till his transfer on 5-3-2023 at residential site ¾ Channi Himmat Jammu with photocopies of all such violations reports and also if any violation report submitted my newly deputed Enforcement Inspector Jasbir Singh, if no such reports submitted , does it mean that there is no violative construction at the site and also whether or not it was not duty of enforcement Inspector deputed in area to report such violations as mentioned in Para-1 to report timely before his Bosses in JMC, please inform accordingly as continue violative construction is going on at the site. Secretary JMC Incharge BOCA Authority Ward-50 vide No. JMC/CEO/68-69 dated 28-4-2023 claimed attaching violations reports but these violations reports were nor relevant and didn’t pertain to site ¾ Channi Himmat and thus openly proving her patronage to owner and also patronage of newly deputed Enforcement Inspector Jasbir Singh.Secretary JMC also didn’t provide information whether the statutory notice vide No. JMC/CEO/748-51 dated 9-9-2022 served to Dr Ashok Kumar Saraf owner of residential site ¾ Channi Himmat Housing Board colony highlighting serious violations in construction ceased to exist after reply submitted by owner dated 12-9-2022 that he will raise only residential construction which he didn’t abide by and has raised Nursing Home without maintaining mandatory setbacks in residential area covering hundred percent area even raising construction on porch.
It deserves mentioning here that Secretary JMC dated 13-4-2023 visited ongoing constructions against and beyond approved site plans respectively at site 396/5 and 397/5 ( violated first and 2nd floor) in Wards 50 and 51 during tour to attend public complaints after public resentment and also visited site in question that is ¾ but ignored serious violations and went back without taking any action against violators when locals strongly protested violative construction which means that Jasbir Singh and Anil Kashyap were also in favour of violators and as a result of which neither earlier Varun Kesar and even after him Jasbir Singh submit any violations reports. Surprisingly Secretary JMC didn’t cross-check violations reports by Enforcement Inspectors and thus in a way making them all powerful which in turn getting much encouragement to continue allowing violative construction and when they are targeted by public , they are only transferred and not punished.Things also did not change with joining of new Enforcement Inspector Jasbir Singh as he along with Enforcement Officer Anil Kashyap despite a thorough briefing by locals in the month of March 2023 didn’t act and passed the buck that the construction has been raised when Varun Kesar was Enforcement in the area and they can’t do anything. As a result of which the violative constructions against and beyond approved site plans are still intact and JMC has turned blind eye and deaf ears towards these construction of which Commissioner JMC should take serious cognizance and should himself visit sites so that enforcement staff could do their duty honestly and curve unauthorized constructions.
Notwithstanding tall claims of Jammu Municipal Corporation to curve unauthorized constructions in Municipal areas against and even beyond approved site plans, the ground reality is that despite bringing the violations particularly of land use change cases in print media along with pictures, befitting action so far not taken in most of the cases resulting in huge credibility loss of JMC. This in turn has only encouraged enforcement staff to allow such constructions to meet their vested interests at the cost of JMP-2032 and Unified Building Bye-laws 2021 and ultimately its JMC Commissioner who should himself become accountable and only then he can expect accountability from his staff. Whenever JMC finds itself tight spot, it only transfers enforcement Inspectors from one ward to another thereby showing that whatever wrong happens in Municipal areas is fault of them but never feels that it is responsibility of JMC to ensure every construction in accordance with approved site plans but the reality is that JMC itself facilitating such constructions resulting in boom in unauthorized constructions.
