Popular eatery in KK Nagar sealed

An official from the Greater Chennai Corporation confirmed that the outlet was sealed on Tuesday, as the establishment had failed to comply with the directions. “The third floor was constructed illegally. There was a case filed at the Madras High Court in 2014 by the land owner about the illegal construction by the tenant, in this case, the hotel. Following this, the Secretary of the Housing and Urban Development department had been asked to remove the illegal construction. The department gave six months for the illegal construction to be removed. Following this, two additional months were granted, failing which the Corporation acted,” said the source.

On Tuesday, the Corporation officials placed the building, which had other shops as well as the restaurant, on seal. “The sealing was carried out before 10 am, without any resistance,” added the source. Earlier this year, Corporation officials sealed the restaurant’s outlet on Peters Road, due to lack of parking. The establishment in KK Nagar was the world popular chain’s first outlet of the popular chain, starting functioning in 1981. 

After the fire at the Chennai Silks textile showroom earlier this year, the CMDA and Corporation had come under heavy fire for failing to regulate illegal constructions, especially in commercial buildings. After the fire, which gutted the seven-storey structure and took several days for the fire and rescue officials to douse, social activist Traffic Ramaswamy moved the Madras High Court seeking action against officials, including the Secretary of Housing and Urban Development Department Pratap Singh Yadav, for letting unauthorised construction run rampant in the commercial hubs of the city.