West Bengal Govt's Big Building Safety Move: All G+5 Structures To Be Audited

Last Updated:June 27, 2026, 13:49 IST

West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendhu Adhikari has asked a special committee to inspect all G+5 buildings, not just in Kolkata but also in surrounding areas.

West Bengal Chief Minister Suvendhu Adhikari has ordered that the special audit of buildings, commissioned in the wake of the Taratala warehouse collapse, be extended to include six-storey or G+5 structures. The audit is now also supposed to take place in municipalities around Kolkata, according to media reports. He has also ordered the suspension of all under-construction commercial building projects till July 31.

Besides Kolkata, the audit will now also be undertaken in municipalities of Howrah, North and South 24 Parganas districts. All buildings, whether residential or commercial in nature, that have five floors above will be considered a high-rise, the Chief Minister said.

The committee constituted to carry out the audit of buildings will be headed by senior officer Rajesh Pandey, Adhikari informed after chairing a meeting of the Urban Development Department. This committee will also include officials of various other departments besides experts from the Rail India Technical and Economic Service (RITES) and Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Kharagpur.

Some of the municipalities, besides Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC), are Rajarhat-Newtown, Bidhannagar Municipal Corporation, Pujali, Budge Budge, Maheshtala, Rajpur-Sonarpur, Baruipur. These are in South 24 Parganas. From North 24 Parganas, South Dumdum, Kamarhati, and Baranagar will be covered.

The Howrah and Bally municipalities in Hooghly district are also in the ambit of this audit.

The permit of the audited buildings will either be rejected, rectified, or given clearance by this committee, Adhikari said.

“One list will be rejection; buildings that have gross violations. Second is rectification; buildings that have some problems and can be rectified. After the rectification of the building plan, they will be given permission to go ahead with construction work. And in the third category will be those buildings that have proper permission and plan," he explained.

Explaining that the suspension of construction work is not a blanket ban, the Chief Minister said, “Everyone does not have to wait till July 31. As and when a ward or project is examined and found satisfactory, clearance will be issued, and work can begin. Our objective is not to halt urban development but to ensure public safety."

Buildings of the state, both central and provincial, schools, and hospitals are exempt from this special audit. The special committee has been asked to complete its work within 90 days.

The mandate of the committee includes a comprehensive audit of fire safety systems, lightning arresters in commercial as well as residential buildings, and even the water bodies are to be audited.

“The Tiljala fire was linked to deficiencies in fire safety arrangements, equipment, and fire licences, resulting in loss of life. Several such incidents have occurred. In Garden Reach, there was no approved building plan, while in Tartala, there were serious deficiencies," Adhikari, who was until recently, the Leader of Opposition, said justifying the exercise as essential.

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