Male’ City Council: Government prevented relocation of garages

Male’ City Council on Thursday stated that the government had stopped the work to relocate all the garages and workshops away from the residential areas.

This statement comes after 10 expatriates died in the fire that broke out in M. Nirufehi, located near the Maaveyo Mosque, around 12:30 am.

Maldives National Defense Force (MNDF) has revealed that 38 migrants were living in the apartment on the building over the garage.

When asked if such places within Male’ City, the Media Official for City Council Mariyam Shiuna said that those places were moniterd. She added that information was gatherd about the places, and surverys have been conducted as well.

Furthermore, Shiuna said that concerns regarding those places have been shared with various government authorities.

She went on to state after the current council took office, they did commence work on relocating all such workshops to the industrial village.

“But the government has taken the industrial village from the City Council and handed over to the Planning Ministry under the guise of bridge project.”

Detailing the council’s attempts, Shiuna said that they tried to move garages and work shops to the empty land on Falhumathee Magu, and an RDC land plot behind Villa Gas station. She said that they had even given RDL a plot of land from a different area to take the one in the industrial village.

However, the Planning Ministry halted all that work, and took the those lands from the City Council as well.

Addressing this, President Ibrahim Mohamed SOlih assured that if any such concerns were shared, they will be looked into.

President Solih said his administration planned on relocating such businesses to designated areas in Gulhifalhu and Thilafushi.

“This is something that requires an urgent solution,” he said.

The talk of relocating garages and workshops have been going on for a long time, though no susbtancial changes have been brought into effect.