The making of Maradu illegal constructions

The Supreme Court had ordered demolition of the over 300 waterfront flats built on the coastal zone at Maradu and the deadline set by the civic authorities for vacating them ended on Thursday. In 2006, CPI(M) has given approval to five agencies to construct 343 flats across 68,000 square metres in the Maradu Gram Panchayat area.

Hyderabad:“Did you know how many people died due to climate change? How many houses have you built for such homeless people? In spite of natural calamities, illegal constructions are mushrooming along coastal areas.” These are the questions posed to the chief secretary of Kerala by the Supreme Court. Illegal constructions in Maradu, Kerala which violate the guidelines of Coastal Regulation Zone (CRZ) were ordered to be demolished. The Maradu issue which is creating political strife is of national importance. In 2006, CPI(M) has given approval to five agencies to construct 343 flats across 68,000 square metres in the Maradu Gram Panchayat area.

Under the Kerala State Coastal Area Development Corporation Limited (KSCADC), the Gram Panchayat issued notices to the builders after nine months. According to CRZ-III A, no constructions must be made in the No Development Zone (NDZ) of 50 meters from the High Tide Line (HTL) as against 200 meters from the HTL stipulated in the CRZ notification. The builders have got a temporary stay from Kerala High Court in 2006 and finished constructing the flats. In 2016, the concerned board filed a petition in the SC. The SC declared the constructions as illegal as they were posing serious threat to the environment and ordered for the demolition. Nobody seems to be bothered about the people who will become homeless without any mistake of theirs. Their loss cannot be filled up by giving a temporary remuneration of Rs 25 lakhs.

While Maradu was developing as a Gram Panchayat, there were several amendments to CRZ. Builders have protested that the buildings were legal at the time of construction according to the then CRZ laws, but their pleas were rejected. On one hand, the SC is taking serious measures to protect environment and on other hand, some quarters of the society are criticizing that such demolitions will impact nature. The SC has not analysed the case properly and it asked apartment dwellers to demand remuneration from their builders.

The Environment Protection Act was made in 1986 but it took 5 years to streamline it. In the past 28 years, 34 amendments have been made to the act making it the most amended act in constitution. CRZ has formulated guidelines to preserve ecologically sensitive coastal areas. In the changing times of rapid industrialization, development and increasing demand for energy, amends have been made in 2011 and most recently in December 2018. In a nation where there are officials who can violate any guidelines with their corrupt mindset, it is disheartening to see CRZ guidelines put on backburner.

The laws must be made in such a way that the locals can comprehend them. Corruption is on the rise due to officials’ indiscrimination and lack of monitoring by the governments. Besides the illegal constructions in Kerala, 61 additional constructions are getting ready to be demolished. The minsters committee which discussed the issue has concluded that 1,800 illegal constructions cannot be spared. Meanwhile, residents of Maradu apartments are expressing agony over court’s blind eye to illegal resort in Alappuzha worth Rs.350 crores, which was given a go ahead after an out of court settlement for Rs.1 crore.

The SC stated that residents are suffering while builders are hell bent on getting permissions while referring to the Mumbai apartment fire which killed four people. The SC has realized that the situation is grim everywhere. Corrupt governments are responsible for violating the citizens’ right to live by giving permissions to illegal constructions. It is the state governments’ duty to protect its residents who are going to become destitute.