Ministry strengthens team in fight against illegal constructions

BİNGÖL

The Environment and Urban Ministry has employed 1,100 construction controllers – in addition to the existing 1,000 personnel – in order to fight against unregistered constructions across the country.

“We are increasing this number [the number of construction controllers across the country] to 2,100. Our new construction controllers will get a training this week in [the Mediterranean province of] Antalya and then will be assigned to their duties,” Environment and Urbanization Minister Murat Kurum said during a meeting on Oct. 23 in the eastern province of Bingöl.

Some 100 of the construction controllers will be on duty in Istanbul, Kurum said. “They will be assigned to wherever there is an illegal construction, in cities, highlands, natural protected areas, etc. They will determine the structures which are against the laws and zoning regulations. And we [as the ministry] will undertake the demolition process with determination,” he said.

“Wherever it is in our country, we will not allow an illegal construction to take place in our country. I would like to indicate that even if the [construction] permission came from a mayor, the necessary criminal action will be taken. We have to protect these cities and hand them down to the next generations,” the minister said.

Last month, Kurum said about 21,000 unlicensed constructions were detected across Turkey, and 8,000 of them were located along the coastline, including 3,260 in the Aegean province of Muğla. He made these comments on Sept. 28 while taking a field analysis in the resort town of Bodrum and observing the demolition process of some of the illegal constructions.

“We had [previously] said that if the violation [of zoning regulations] is not removed [from the relevant construction sites], we would have, through the governor’s office, taken the demolishment ourselves. At the end of the legal processes, the [construction] firms initiated processes to remove the discrepancies [illegal constructions]. Within this process, we have continued our inspections, and as of today there are 19 projects in violation of zoning regulations that consist of 2,100 independent sections and 11 hotel units,” Kurum had told reporters.