Residents of shaky wadas bear with risks, miss out on tenancy certificates
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Pune: Chandrakant Kandhare (50), an auto-rickshaw driver, has been living at Mote Wada, a crumbling building near Shaniwarwada, for as long as he could remember.
He is the fourth generation of the family living at the 200-year-old wada.
The same is the case with his neighbours — Kabules and Ghags — who have been staying as tenants at the wada for more than 120 years.
They have not heard about the tenancy certificates offered by Pune Municipal Corporation (PMC) to occupants of dilapidated wadas.
The initiative by PMC assures rights of tenants of dilapidated wadas. Doubts over its utility, legal value and fear of losing property rights after leaving the dilapidated wadas have kept away many from applying for the certificate.
"The govt has put restrictions on redeveloping properties near Shaniwarwada. It has stalled development of wadas. We are left with no option but to stay in this dilapidated property," said Kandhare. All that these residents want is improvement of the building's safety so that their future generations could continue to stay there.
Swapnil Ghag, a youngster who spent his childhood in the wada, said the authorities should come to the aid of residents.
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"A part of the wada caved in a few years ago. The authorities should remove the damaged portions to ensure the safety of residents," he said.
According to the residents, their forefathers paid rent of around 20 paise, which went up to around Rs 50 per month. Though parts of the property have suffered damage, many tenants continue to stay put, putting their lives at risk. Though some have moved out, they continue to pay rent either to the owner or in court in case of a legal dispute to ensure that they retain their property rights on the wada.
According to PMC data, only around 650 tenancy certificates have been issued since the initiative started about 10 years ago to resolve the legal battle between owners and occupants of wadas. Over 15,000 tenants still live in wadas, mostly in Peth areas of the city.
Faced with poor response to the initiative from wada dwellers, the civic administration has been exploring other options like giving additional floor space index (FSI) for redevelopment of wadas.
These can be utilised to accommodate tenants as owners if a wada is redeveloped immediately. "But if a wada is not redeveloped immediately, the tenancy certificate is the guarantee of tenancy rights," an official said.
Former PMC corporator Vishal Dhanwande, a resident of a Peth area, said, "The administration lacks willingness to deal with the issue. Many officials show reluctance to demolishing these properties.
This can lead to major mishaps. The residents of nearby areas can suffer because of the accident-prone structures."
He said the administration should make more efforts to convince the tenants to accept the certificates. Camps or special drives should be organised to create awareness about the same, Dhanwande said.
Abhay Joshi, a wada resident, said, "PMC should make efforts to resolve the problem of dilapidated structures.
Many of us live in dangerous conditions. The properties are dilapidated and can cause accidents any time, especially during the monsoon."
PMC has divided these dangerous structures into three categories — C1, C2, and C3. The most dangerous ones are in the C1 category, while those which need major repairs are in C2 category. The C3 category structures need minor repairs.
Rajesh Bhutkar, a senior official of PMC's building permission department, said, "Safety and security of people is of utmost importance to us.
The administration has been urging people to vacate the dangerous premises following which demolition drives can be carried out. PMC keeps track of people getting tenancy certificates." The civic body had given notices to residents of 103 rickety wadas ahead of the monsoon.
"Most of us belong to the financially weaker sections of the society and cannot afford to pay the market rent," said an occupant of a wada. So, they continue to gamble with fate and stay in these crumbling buildings despite the obvious risks.
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