Extend deadline to vacate flats to October 1: residents of Signature View building

Residents of Signature View Apartments in Mukherjee Nagar, which is set for demolition after an IIT Delhi audit declared it ‘structurally unsafe’, have asked the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) to extend the deadline to vacate their flats to October 1, citing difficulty in finding rented accommodation at short notice.

The request follows the MCD’s order to disconnect civic services between August 10 and 20. In a letter to the MCD’s Civil Lines zone, the Residents’ Welfare Association (RWA) urged Tata Power, Delhi Jal Board, and Indraprastha Gas to defer disconnection of services until October. “This would allow residents to vacate in a dignified manner,” said Gaurav Pandey, secretary of the RWA’s managing committee.

The RWA pointed out that even the Delhi Development Authority (DDA), in its May 1 standard operating procedure and proposal document, had allowed 60 days to vacate the premises and set September 30 as the deadline.

After nine residents of the building approached the Delhi High Court on August 7, it restrained the DDA and MCD from taking coercive action until August 25, but clarified that those staying on would do so at their own risk.

Mr. Pandey cited delays by the DDA. Of the 336 flats, 140 have been vacated, but the rent documents of many residents have not been processed, he said.