Chief Secretary wants legislation on Building Codes for Gilgit-Baltistan
Our Correspondent
Gilgit, March 26: The Chief Secretary of Gilgit-Baltistan, Yunus Dhaga, has directed the Secretary for Law to initiate the legislative process to develop building codes for the mountainous regions. He also asked the Law Secretary to consult with all the stakeholders to ensure a comprehensive law.
The instruction was given today at a high level meeting held at the Chief Secretary office in Gilgit.
The mountainous Gilgit-Baltistan region is prone to numerous natural hazards, including floods and landslides which has in the past led to numerous deaths in urban, semi-urban and rural settings in all districts. The need for having and implementing building codes in the hazard prone region has been an overdue exercise.
Experts have, in the past, recommended that all buildings in the Gilgit-Baltistan region should earthquake resilient and constructed at sites that are safe from landslides, flood paths, river beds and avalanche sites.
It is pertinent to note that a study in 2011 had revealed that around 80% of school buildings constructed in the region by the Gilgit-Baltistan administration and government are unsafe and prone to disasters.
