‘All new buildings are quake-resistant’

Allaying earthquake fears filling the air,developers and civic officials say steps have been taken to ensure that new buildings in the city would withstand the impact in case of an earthquake striking home terrain. Developers say citizens should not be worried as constructions are being done keeping in view the earthquake resistance of a particular area.

Confederation of Real Estate Developers Association of India (CREDAI) officials said buildings are constructed after the reinforced cement concrete (RCC) structure confirms with the earthquake resistance in a particular area. “There is no risk in Pune as all the buildings,including high-rise buildings,are constructed keeping in view the earthquake resistance of a particular area. The buildings are constructed only after an approval by an RCC consultant,” said CREDAI president Satish Magar.

PMC Deputy Commissioner Pravin Ashtikar said the corporation has modified the development control rules (DC) and has set up a committee which studies the building plans to ensure that they are quake-resistant. “There are strict instructions that buildings which can’t stand quakes shouldn’t be approved.”

DSK Developers CMD D S Kulkarni said,“Since 1984,Pune has been declared to be in earthquake zone 3 on seismic scale. Hence,as per central government code IS 13920,it is mandatory to build earthquake-resistant structures,so all our projects are earthquake resistant.” He said chances of earthquake hitting Pune are less as the city is mostly rocky.

Kulkarni said even if an earthquake hits the city,there won’t be much damage. “Cities like Delhi,Amritsar and Sikkim are more prone to earthquakes due to porous land in the areas. In Pune,tie-beam technique is used in construction which can absorb up to 7.2 earthquake shock on Richter scale. If an earthquake of this magnitude hits the city,buildings will develop cracks but there will be no loss of life.”

Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Commissioner Asheesh Sharma said in PCMC area they ensure that building projects confirm to the guidelines of the National Disaster Management Authority.

“We are strict about this. The basic purpose is to ensure that there is minimum damage when an earthquake occurs. It is not possible to have cent per cent earthquake proof building,but the damage could be reduced drastically by following the guidelines,” Sharma said.