KOCHI: Residents' associations in the city are bonding together to fight off whom they call real-estate sharks who build multi-storey apartment blocks and high-rises in their neighbourhoods.

They say that until recently, local communities and residents' associations could just sulk or watch helplessly as apartment complexes came up in their midst within a span of months, dislocating the walls and roofs of neighbourhood homes and upsetting the peace of mind of the inhabitants. It was hard for individual homeowners or small groups to stand up to the money power and muscle power of the builders. But now, they are forming collectives to mount legal, moral and even political battles against the builders who do not listen to their pleas.

"These buildings put a heavy burden on the public infrastructure such as roads and water supply created in these communities over several decades," says K.T. Thomson, convener of one such collective. Water shortage is a common feature in many residential colonies where new apartments come up overnight as they squeeze the water supply system, he adds.

The small, narrow roads get congested because of the heavy traffic of the apartment dwellers' cars, he said.

An environmental economist and Professor at Cochin University of Science and Technology, Dr. Thomson, said the new apartments caused heavy strain on `environmental values,' apart from hurting the peace, living habits and culture of the local communities. He pointed out that the construction activities created noise and dust pollution in the communities for several months on end. There had been several instances where the `piling' for new structures sent shock waves in the surrounding houses and created cracks on the walls and roofs. Many houses had been turned uninhabitable. Neighbours who opposed such constructions were either silenced by the money and muscle power of the builders or the builders bought over the houses and plots.

The residents' association at Alinchuvadu in the city, headed by Dr. Thomson, has been fighting off a building firm's plan to locate a 12-storey apartment block on a 20-cent strip of land. To muster support for their cause, the association recently gathered together residential associations in Padivattam, Vennala, Palarivattam and Edappally and formed a joint platform to oppose such constructions. It has also sought the backing of non-governmental organisations, political activists and civil society organisations.

The forum is planning to petition the Cochin Corporation, the State Government and the Pollution Control Board to forestall the construction. It would also launch an awareness-creating campaign to highlight the risks posed by such constructions.

Dr. Thomson said the forum will encourage other residential associations to resist real estate sharks locating huge buildings violating all norms in their respective neighbourhoods. He urged the Cochin Corporation, in view of the mushrooming of apartment blocks and high-rises in the nooks and corners of the city, to formulate strict town planning rules and zoning norms.

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