Handover of 208 flats of Chander Kunj for demolition will begin in Kerala’s Kochi on Monday

The twin towers of Chander Kunj Army Apartment Complex in Vyttil, Kochi. | Photo credit: THULASI KAKKAT

Handing over of 208 flats in Towers ‘B’ and ‘C’ of Chander Kunj Army Housing Complex, Silver Sand Island, Vyttila, Kochi, to the Army Welfare Housing Organization (AWHO) for demolition will begin on Monday (October 5, 2026) and is expected to be completed within a fortnight.

Kanayannur tahsildar will monitor the handover process. This was among the key decisions taken at a meeting of the district’s select committee to oversee the demolition and reconstruction of the flats. The meeting was the first since the Kerala High Court last month dismissed a petition by PK Unique Projects Limited, a Tamil Nadu-based company, challenging the committee’s decision to award the demolition contract to Mumbai-based Edifice Engineering.

“After the petition was rejected, the decks were cleared to speed up the demolition process. Handing over the flats is a critical step in this regard,” committee sources said. The towers are likely to be demolished within four months.

Chander Kunj Army Towers Flat Owners Association (CATAOA) will start issuing notices to flat owners asking them to hand over their flats either directly or through authorized agents. Owners’ representatives strongly objected to AWHO’s demand that the flats be handed over to the tahsildar, fearing that the organization might avoid responsibility later after the demolition. They insisted that AWHO should remain responsible for returning the reconstructed flats.

“The sub-committee chaired by Fort Kochi Revenue Divisional Officer (RDO) will finalize the draft demolition contract next week after assessing the habitability of ‘A’ tower.” This will be followed by the signing of the demolition contract between RDO and Edifice Engineering. AWHO was initially supposed to be a signatory to the demolition agreement before withdrawing. Subsequently, the District Collector gave him an option to deposit the entire amount of demolition cost (₹9.60, plus GST) in advance in the Collector’s escrow account, which AWHO has since complied with,” said Saji Thomas, president of CATAOA.

The subcommittee will also review and finalize the request for proposal to be issued for the appointment of a project management consultant.

The Collectorate Committee has also decided in principle to approach the Supreme Court seeking a direction to AWHO to pay rent to the 24 owners who have not received even a single month’s rent so far. The remaining owners have received a year’s rent to date. The committee further decided that the owners will be entitled to a revised rent from AWHO in accordance with the lease agreement, which is usually revised annually.

Edifice Engineering and its authorized dealers will start visiting the apartments from Saturday for preliminary studies before the actual demolition. After a two-day pre-demolition inspection in June, Edifice Engineering said that while the two towers could be brought down sequentially in seconds, preparations for the demolition and subsequent debris removal could take longer.

Published – 02 Oct 2026 07:00 IST