Sections of 21 rooftop cafes and bars have been shut by the New Delhi Municipal Council in Connaught Place, as Hindustan Times reported.
This move comes after a part of the ceiling in CP’s C Block collapsed last week, raising safety concern in the city’s central shopping and restaurant hub.
Places that are sealed include My Bar Headquarters, Warehouse Cafe in D-block, The Vault Cafe in F-block, Kinbuck-2 and Kitchen Bar in C-block, Lord of the Drinks, Open House Cafe, Jungle Jamboree, Boombox Cafe, Farzi Cafe, House of Commons, Hotel Palace Heights, Office Canteen Bar, Luggage Room, Cafe OMG, Unplugged Courtyard, Barbeque Nation, TC Bar & Restaurant, Teddy Boy Restaurant and The Niche Restaurant, as officials were quoted saying.
The open-air restaurants have been running for years without permission. The chief architect’s office had sent showcause notices to these for misuse of premises under Sections 250 and 252 of the NDMC Act, 1994. The rooftop sections were sealed on Friday.Senior Official
He added that using terraces of heritage buildings for commercial purposes is prohibited by the council.
Ajit Ajmani, the owner of MyBar Headquarters, said these establishments had been issued notices by the NDMC.
They asked us not to use the balcony or terrace for commercial activity. After the collapse, the officials came and sealed the rooftop areas.
In 2016, the New Delhi Traders Association wrote to the NDMC to cap the number of restaurants who can use rooftops commercially, citing stress on the heritage structures.
A six-member panel has already been formed by the NDMC, comprising safety experts from IIT Delhi for ascertaining the reason behind the roof collapse.
Connaught Place was constructed in 1933 and received a facelift in 2007, which had to get finished by the Commonwealth Games in 2010. However, it missed several deadlines and restoration only finished in 2013, after the budget escalating from Rs 76 crore to Rs 671 crore.
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