DOHA: A number of traditional Arabic houses in Madinat Khalifa (South), many of which were built more than four decades ago, are being “dangerously” converted into commercial space to accommodate restaurants and automobile garages.
Some of these houses are being expanded to make way for workers’ lodgings, the Central Municipal Council (CMC) member from the area told the House on Sunday.
Mohamed Al Dosri blamed the municipal authorities and said that people were carrying out large-scale expansions in traditional homes without civic permission and municipal inspectors were conspicuous by their absence.
The CMC took up the issue for discussion following a recent incident in Madinat Khalifa (South) where a worker was injured when an old structure caved in during an excavation work that was being carried out on an adjacent plot of land to construct a new building. The worker was rushed for emergency medical attention. Fortunately, the ill-fated building had no occupants.
Al Dosri said that many of the traditional Arabic homes being converted in his locality were more than 40 years old. He said that for any incident like the one that took place recently, the owner must be held responsible. The Peninsula
