Evacuate residents of Army Towers as soon as possible: PWD report

KOCHI: A report by the Public Works Department says that residents of the Chanderkunj Army Towers in Vyttila Silver Sand Island should be evacuated as soon as possible. According to the report submitted to the collector on December 21, VM Aseena, the joint director and executive engineer of the design department, said that the 29-storey B and C towers are in a very critical condition.

"Concrete columns and beams etc. in the basement have been broken in a big way. The structural stability of the building is at risk. Even if a detailed study is to be conducted, the residents should be evacuated first.," the report said.

Although the Madras IIT team issued a report on November 5, 2023, the GCDA Executive Engineer on December 21, and the Tripunithura Municipality on January 29, 2023 to evacuate the residents from 208 flats as soon as possible, the lives of hundreds of people and the metro rail are being overlooked by the Disaster Management Authority. The authority chaired by the collector has not taken any action till yesterday.

The promoters of the project, the Army Welfare Housing Organisation, under the control of the Army, are making efforts to maintain the building. Chanderkunj Army Towers are among the tallest buildings in the city of Kochi. It was handed over to the owners in 2018.