Around 30 flats in Delhi’s Pitampura have been ordered to be vacated within 48 hours after municipal authorities issued notices citing the dilapidated condition of buildings in NP Block, leaving residents facing an immediate safety and housing crisis. The notices were issued on September 12, according to a report by Jagran – New Delhi, which said residents were warned of administrative action if they did not comply.
The action covers four buildings, with notices pasted on the structures after authorities assessed them as unsafe. Each building has eight flats on every floor, according to the report. Residents have raised concerns over where families will live if they are required to leave their homes at short notice, particularly those who say they purchased the flats with their savings.
The buildings’ condition has been linked in the report to long-term maintenance problems. Their ground floors housed a government dispensary until 1988, after which the premises were reportedly not maintained adequately. The deterioration at the ground level continued over time, and several iron jacks had to be installed on the roof as a safety measure, the report said.
The evacuation order has also brought the question of unauthorised construction into focus. The report said that flats had been built illegally on the third and fourth floors of two buildings and on the third floor of another. Residents questioned how additional floors could have been constructed if buildings above two floors were not permitted in the area, and who authorised or overlooked the work.
Rupal, identified as a resident of 130B in Pitampura’s NP Block, told the newspaper that she had lived there for 10 years and that six people were in her household. She questioned how the family could find alternative accommodation within such a short period. Residents also alleged that three buildings were ordered vacated after one building was found to be dilapidated, and said they were bearing the cost of administrative inaction.
The case highlights the immediate difficulty of enforcing building-safety orders where structural deterioration, old public facilities, private occupation and suspected unauthorised construction overlap. A notice may address the immediate risk of residents remaining inside an unsafe structure, but the reported account does not specify whether temporary accommodation, rehabilitation support, structural repair plans or compensation have been arranged.
The notices require residents to vacate within 48 hours. Further action is expected from the administration if occupants do not comply with the order.
