Syed Ali Shah :
LISTEN ARTICLE
Quetta, Pakistan’s southwestern city was razed to the ground within 30 seconds on May 31st, 1935 in the aftermath of the deadliest earthquake. The British rulers introduced a specific building code of 30 feet in height after thorough research and studies to avoid human losses in the case of future earthquakes. The building code also outlawed the use of certain materials in roofs, and only wood and tin roofs were permitted. The building code introduced in 1937 defined seven building types.
The British colonial rulers strictly ensured the implementation of the building code. Governments be military or civilians failed to ensure the implementation of the building code after the independence of Pakistan. For some time, the Quetta Municipal Corporation maintained the implementation of the building code. However, that is no more the case as more than 100 feet-high shopping malls, and residential plazas have been constructed in the heart of the city.
A well-placed source in the Quetta Metropolitan Corporation (QMC) revealed that over 500 buildings were constructed in violation of the building code. Rich owners of plazas and shopping malls constructed buildings right under the nose of the QMC and the Quetta Development Authority (QDA) officials. Simply, they greased the palm of the concerned officials and got their maps passed overnights with no objection. The administration was also complicit in this regard.
Poorly constructed buildings in violation of the building code have put the lives of citizens in danger. One laborer was killed and four others got injured when an under-construction building collapsed the other day in Quetta’s Stewart Road. Despite applications of the residents of the area to the Administrator QMC, the contractor and owner kept continued the construction work in freezing temperatures. Subsequently, the building collapsed and claiming a human life and injuring another four.
Three points from Balochistan High Court’s order regarding building code in Quetta:
1. No building is to be constructed without an approved building plan.
2. No residential building shall be allowed to be converted into a commercial building.
3. No permission shall be granted for the construction of a commercial building in a residential area.
To be precise, Quetta is located in the earthquake red zone. This is neither a political matter nor an economic issue rather it is a matter of human lives. The Balochistan government must form a committee to probe into the construction of buildings in violation of the building code to avert human losses in the future. A lesson must be learned from the deadliest earthquake in Turkey and Syria.
