Army towers: Ernakulam district administration to decide demolition agency

Kochi: Ernakulam district administration will decide the demolition agency of the dilapidated towers B and C of Chander Kunj Army Towers at Silver Sand Island in Vyttila.A district administration official said they expect to complete tender proceedings in a week. He refused to comment on when the building will be demolished. It has been learned that nine agencies have expressed interest. One of them is Edifice Engineering which demolished one of the four buildings in Maradu in 2020.Edifice Engineering sources said they had a meeting with district administration regarding technical and commercial aspects in connection with tender proceedings. With all the residents have been vacated, ground has been cleared for demolition agency to implode the towers.High court ordered demolition and reconstruction of the towers in 2025. All the residents were evacuated with Army Welfare Housing Organization (AWHO), which built the towers, meeting their rental expenses.Construction of the building, a retirement home, began in 2016 and flats were handed over to owners in 2018.Study report of IIT Madras confirmed towers B and C are unsafe and pose threat to residents.This is second time Kochi is witnessing implosion of imposing structures. Ironically, Chander Kunj building is situated in Maradu municipality where four buildings were demolished in Jan 2020 following a Supreme court order as the structures were constructed in violation of CRZ rules.