Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation has ordered vigilance action after 21 files linked to alleged unauthorised construction in the Central Zone Estate Department reportedly went missing, raising concerns over how building approvals and post-approval land use are being monitored in the city’s historic walled area.
The missing files relate to properties and construction activity in areas including Shahpur Gam Tal, Halimni Khadki, Vachlo Vankarvas, Shahpur Mill Compound, Mota Kumbharwado, Dudhvali Pol, Mirzapur near St Xavier’s School, Ghee Kanta Sheth’s Vando, Delvali Khadki, Dudheshwar Ravi Estate, Lallubhai’s Pol, Rajasthan Society, Tavdipura and Dhobighat, according to a report by Nav Gujarat Samay.
The report said AMC Commissioner had ordered a vigilance inquiry after complaints increased about unauthorised construction and the alleged commercial conversion of properties in the walled city. When the vigilance department sought files concerning illegal construction and allegedly unauthorised use of properties after approval, officials in the Central Zone Estate Department reportedly found that the files could not be traced.
The files are understood to concern cases involving construction permissions, alleged illegal structures and properties where residential approval was reportedly followed by commercial use. The report also alleged that several old properties inside pols were being purchased, altered or allowed to deteriorate before commercial structures were developed. These claims have not been independently established in the material supplied for this report.
Ahmedabad’s walled city contains a large concentration of heritage properties and has been recognised as a World Heritage City. According to municipal sources cited in the report, around 2,700 heritage-significant properties in the area are registered with the heritage trust. The report said the rapid expansion of commercial activity in several pols has also intensified traffic and parking pressures, with areas such as Manek Chowk becoming difficult to navigate on foot.
A second issue has emerged over files linked to heritage properties. The report said the commissioner’s inquiry found that 37 files connected to heritage properties and restoration work were also reportedly missing. The commissioner is said to have instructed officials to file a police complaint after the files could not be located. The report did not establish whether these 37 files are separate from the 21 Central Zone Estate files or whether there is any overlap between the two groups.
The missing records are significant because municipal files document the permissions, inspections, notices and enforcement actions associated with buildings. When such records cannot be produced, it can complicate investigations into whether construction was approved, whether a property’s use changed after approval and whether enforcement proceedings were initiated.
The report said questions were being raised within the municipal administration about whether the 21 files had been transferred to another department before they went missing. Attempts to contact the Central Zone Deputy Estate Officer for a response were reportedly unsuccessful. The next formal steps cited in the report are the vigilance inquiry and the proposed police complaint concerning the missing heritage-related files.
