Signature View goes darkish as deadline to vacate ends

With the Delhi High Court’s October 12 deadline to vacate the “structurally unsafe“ Signature View Apartments in Mukherjee Nagar expiring, authorities on Monday disconnected water and electrical energy provides to the complicated, with over 50 households nonetheless occupying the premises.

Officials from the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD), Tata Power, Delhi Jal Board, and Delhi Police carried out the disconnection process following a September 29 assembly, throughout which the Civil Lines Deputy Commissioner directed that every one important companies be halted to implement the eviction. 

Gaurav Pandey, secretary of the Residents’ Welfare Association (RWA), mentioned 286 households have already moved out. “Fifty-six households vacated within the final three days, and one other 30-35 had been within the means of leaving this week,” he mentioned. “We had requested a two-week extension for the remaining households, however this morning we noticed all officers deployed, and water and electrical energy had been disconnected.”

Residents cite challenges similar to discovering new properties close to places of work and colleges as causes for the delay. Roopesh, 53, who is about to maneuver right into a rented flat in two days, mentioned his household will stick with family briefly. “By 11 a.m., police had been right here, and the connections had been lower. We had saved some water in anticipation,” he mentioned.

Another resident, Sandeep Gaur, 42, who is just shifting out a day later, spent the day packing in candlelight. “We couldn’t discover a painter in time to complete the brand new flat as a result of Diwali rush. This has been one other battle through the pageant season,” he mentioned.

The DDA initially set a July 31 deadline, which the High Court later prolonged to October 12. The court docket had additionally ordered the formation of a judicial committee to observe the three-year reconstruction of the complicated.

The transfer comes after months of delays and repeated extensions sought by residents of the 336-flat housing complicated, initially constructed by the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) for the 2010 Commonwealth Games. Soon after the flats had been offered by the DDA in 2012, cracks began appearing and structural deterioration set in, with incidents of roof ceilings collapsing, plaster peeling off, and corrosion and rusting of the metal bars.

The 12-tower complicated was deemed “structurally unsafe” by IIT Delhi in a 2022 report, citing extreme building flaws. Demolition was ordered following a number of skilled assessments. In December 2024, a single-judge bench of the Delhi High Court ordered the demolition of the towers, calling them “structurally unsafe,” and directed the DDA to pay month-to-month compensation to displaced residents. As talked about within the order, the facilitation quantity will improve by 10% yearly till the rebuilt flats are handed over.