Media reports on the collapse of a residential building in Fenghua, Zhejiang province, have sparked a public debate on the poor state of some buildings in China. And the public seems concerned over the lack of measures to prevent similar incidents elsewhere, says an article in Guangzhou Daily. Excerpts:

The fact that local officials and experts had inspected the building in Fenghua without giving any warning of the poor state it was in just days before it collapsed has created panic among the public. More shocking for the public is the fact that the officials and experts had declared the building safe.

People now say that officials and experts need to exercise more caution while declaring a building safe to prevent similar incidents.

Officials should, therefore, monitor the construction industry more strictly and strengthen the supervision of unsafe and dilapidated buildings. Some media reports have exposed the activities of greedy real estate developers who compromise the quality of products used in construction and thus jeopardize the lives of residents.

The authorities, therefore, have to put in place a "safety net" around the construction industry and scrutinize building proposals more minutely before approving them. Since realty developers are likely to exploit the loopholes in building rules and the supervision mechanism, the authorities should take measures to ensure that developers use quality materials. The measures should include strengthening building rules and penalizing developers who violate them.

A house is the most expensive asset that most people buy. So the realty sector should be monitored more closely. Time and disasters are the best criteria to judge the strength of a building. But that doesn't mean officials should not take measures to ensure that developers follow all the norms while constructing a building.

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