Two more apartment complexes, built in violation of the Coastal Regulation Zone norms in Kochi’s Maradu, were demolished today following the Supreme Court’s order to raze four luxury complexes in the area.
The illegal lakeside apartment complexes, Jain Coral Cove and Golden Kayaloram, were demolished using controlled implosion method.
The 55-metre-tall Jain Coral Cove, the largest of the four with nearly 100 flats surrounded by backwaters at all sides, was brought down at around 11.03 am.
#WATCH Maradu flats demolition: Jain Coral Cove complex demolished through a controlled implosion.2 out of the 4 illegal apartment towers were demolished yesterday, today is the final round of the operation. #Kochi #Kerala pic.twitter.com/mebmdIm1Oa
— ANI (@ANI) January 12, 2020
The fourth and last building — Golden Kayaloram — was demolished at 2.30 pm, marking the completion of implementing the court’s order passed last year.
#WATCH Maradu flats demolition: Golden Kayalorum apartment demolished through a controlled implosion. All 4 illegal apartment towers have now been demolished. #Kerala pic.twitter.com/TBvHBjuIZR
— ANI (@ANI) January 12, 2020
The four complexes together had a total of 343 flats.
Two of the four waterfront apartment complexes — H2O Holy Faith and the twin towers of Alfa Serene — were brought down within seconds in similar fashion on Saturday.
Mumbai’s Edifices Engineering carried out the explosion with the assistance of experts from South Africa-based Jet Demolition.
Massive arrangements were in place for the two-day demolition drive. Over 2,000 residents in the nearby areas were shifted and traffic restrictions were imposed in the evacuation zone.
Meanwhile, residents living in the neighbourhood approached the Kerala High Court seeking its intervention to ensure that they get adequate compensation in case their houses were damaged during the demolition process.
In September last year, the Supreme Court had ordered the demolition of the four buildings in Maradu after taking note of a report of a three-member committee, which said when the buildings were built, the area was already notified as Coastal Regulation Zone or CRZ and construction was prohibited.
The top court had directed demolition of the flats within 138 days, a timeline given by the Kerala government. The court had also ordered a compensation of Rs 25 lakh each to flat owners.