Dilapidated houses, ancient havelis collapse in Jaisalmer

Jaisalmer: The heavy downpour here is giving sleepless nights to the Sonar Fort residents as there has been news of old, dilapidated havelis and buildings collapsing. The residents here are unable to get their damaged houses repaired as the administration has not given them any permission to do so. If the archaeological department, municipal council and the district administration do not act on time then a big catastrophe might happen.The municipal council has conducted a survey of dilapidated houses and served notices to the owners to demolish them. However, this seems to be a formality.
According to the information received, the district received 79.5mm of rainfall on Friday due to which Khetpalia Haveli, an old and dilapidated building collapsed. The owners of the haveli, for past several years, had been trying to get permission to repair it but weren’t given the nod. Similarly, many ancient haveli, godowns and other buildings of the erstwhile royal family are in dilapidated condition. There are cracks forming on them due to water seeping into the foundation.
Apart from this there are more than two dozen buildings that can collapse any time. Many owners had applied for permission to get them repaired but did not get it till date. Owners of several houses live outside the district. Water seeps into the foundation of these locked houses which also affects nearby houses. Vimal Gopa, a resident of Sonar Fort said that many people want to get their houses repaired but the archaeological department has banned all works and people are unable to get it done. He had applied for permission in February 2021 but there has been no response till date.
Ashish Modi, the then district collector also wrote to the archaeological department, requesting it to give permission and simplify rules, but till date no action has been taken.
According to municipal commissioner Lajpal Singh Sodha some houses are on the verge of collapsing and pose risk to lives and nearby properties. Eight house owners have been given notices under the Rajasthan Municipality Act Section 243 to get their houses repaired or pull them down. If this is not done in stipulated time then the authorities will seized and demolish the buildings.