SANGEET SANGROULA
Most government buildings in and outside the Kathmandu Valley have been found to be violating the Building Act 2055 BS. The buildings do not have maps or designs without which the structures would not be approved by the concerned agencies, therefore, making such constructions illegal.

Officials at the Department of Development and Building Construction (DUDBC), which is responsible for implementing the Building Act and the National Building Code, say that over 95 percent of government buildings have been constructed in sheer violation of the act and the code.
As per the Building Act, 2055, which was last amended in 2064 BS, any individual, institution or government bodies, including government-owned autonomous institutions, should compulsorily obtain approvals for maps and designs of their houses or buildings from municipality offices or the division offices of the DUDBC.

The municipality offices or DUDBC offices look into whether the designs and the maps are in tune with National Building Code, 2060 BS, and other standards mentioned in the act before approving them.

“It is sad that almost all government buildings, including those located in the capital, have yet to present their maps and designs before the concerned authorities for approval," said Ramesh Prasad Singh, deputy director general of DUDBC.

According to Singh, designs and maps of only a handful of government buildings have been approved from the municipality offices so far.
As of now the building act and regulation have been enforced in all 58 municipalities, 28 district headquarters of urbanized districts and 24 urbanizing VDCs.

According to a recent economic survey released by the government in 2011, there are 68,085 government institutions that serve public, including 4,396 hospitals, 48,076 public schools and 2,744 campuses. Likewise, there are almost 2,850 government offices and 3,000 government-backed autonomous institutions, including various councils, committees, corporations and other organizations, among others.
“If was estimate that each of these offices and organizations have at least two buildings on an average, the number of government buildings crosses over 150,000. However, only a few government bodies have approved their building maps and designs from municipality offices or the DUDBC,” said Singh.

DUDBC has not been able to make seismic vulnerability assessment of the public and governmental buildings because of the negligence. “It is posing a hurdle in the implementation of the building code,” said Singh.
“If the government authorities themselves breach the laws, how can we compel the public to follow them? The building act implementation should begin with the government itself,” he stressed.

The building act authorizes DUDBC to carry out construction and maintenance of all governmental buildings, prepare policies related to building constructions and implement the building code. However, most government bodies construct buildings without bothering to get the maps and designs approved, according to him.

“The government offices across the country, including the ones inside Singhdurbar complex have been adding floors without assessing the capacity of their building,” he informed.

Of total Rs 10 billion allotted in the last fiscal year for construction and maintenance of government buildings, DUDBC spent only Rs 3 billion. “The remaining amount of the budget was released directly to the government bodies by the Ministry of Finance,” said he.

If the government really wants DUDBC to be the main agency responsible for constructing government buildings, all such works should be carried out from DUDBC only, Singh said. “Only then the building code would be implemented effectively, which is important as Nepal ranks as one of the most vulnerable country to earthquakes.”

A study team has been formed by the building construction management committee under the chairmanship of Kishor Thapa, secretary of MUD to assess the government buildings in the Kathmandu Valley and in the areas where the building act and regulations are enforced.
The study team will submit the report to the committee along with recommendation for further action, said Singh.

Why building code is necessary
ANANTA R BAIDYA,A licensed Civil Engineer based in California and visiting faculty at Kathmandu University

Building codes, as legal instruments, ensure public safety in buildings and protect the environment. Effective codes assess natural and man-made hazards. Regulatory authorities are expected to develop, honestly implement, and upgrade codes to balance the risks from these hazards.

Minimum design-construction standards are included in codes to minimize the loss of life during events such as earthquakes and fires. Occupants are protected during fires using developed principals of exiting.

Limitations on building heights and area are based on specified use, materials of construction, and fire-protection and structural engineering principals. Method to reduce risks from “mixed use” (when several uses are incorporated in a building) or “change in use” (from that originally permitted) are already incorporated in US based codes.

Land development codes ensure infrastructure development so lives can be saved and quality of life improved. These rules are implemented nationally, state-wide and in municipalities and county in the US. Violators are penalized. Past tragedies, catastrophes, devastating incidents of fires, earthquakes, flood helped in the code development.

The Code of Hammurabi (3000 BC), the Burning of Rome (64 AD), the Great London Fire (1666), the Chicago Fire (1871), the San Francisco Earthquake (1906), the Northridge Earthquake (1994) are few historically tragic events that shaped modern codes. Thousands die when codes fail to function. The recent Bangladesh building collapse is a classic example.

Any Government, by the people, for the people and of the people, leads by example. Public recognizes double standard when Government demonstrates ignorance and irrationality by ignoring their own codes. Codes exist for public safety. Government´s mandate is to consciously develop, follow, and implement fair and equitable codes to meet aspects of minimum safety expected of any community.

Fortunately, there is Nepal National Building Code-94 (NBC-94) exists. But implementation requires scrutiny.

Realistically, NBC-94 needs major revisions to address new realities and challenges of buildings in Nepal. Revisions shall incorporate the inter-twined relationship between structural and non-structural safety and disabled access.

Government agencies should honestly understand their essential role as regulators and guardians of public safety and take the following steps:
a. Set the right tone: Follow your own codes and regulations. The public understands the double standard, will understand codes, its importance and value in saving their lives by your example. Other land development stakeholders cannot ignore codes with a educated public that make demands.

b. Grasp the implications of a fundamentally non-functioning building code. Make immediate realistic additions to NBC-94to address all non-structural safety aspects.

c. Develop enforceable and honest inspection program that verifies that structures are built per approval and all deviations from the approved plans are honestly scrutinized and evaluated to meet all safety criteria.

d. Stakeholders (including developers and constructors) must pay their fair share to improve infrastructure affected by developments. Prior to permit issuance, impacted infrastructures need upgrading to manage emergencies: access for rescue vehicles, water to fight fires. Through this effort, preserve and protect Nepal´s unique cultural heritage and sites and World Heritage Sites.

source: republica,18 July 2013