LUCKNOW, Aug. 11 -- The Lucknow Municipal Corporation (LMC) appears far from fully prepared to tackle the city's structural safety crisis, even as the monsoon intensifies and a recent building crack in Aliganj triggered urgent inspections. While officials from the engineering department have identified over 208 dilapidated buildings across four municipal zones, Zone 7 and Zone 8 have surprisingly reported none. Zone 4 has just four, and Zone 5 only one dilapidated building, indicating possible laxity on the part of the LMC team. The matter came into focus on Monday after a large crack appeared in a partially dilapidated building near Dandaiya Market in Aliganj (Zone 3). The incident prompted a site visit by member of legislative council Ramchandra Singh, mayor Sushma Kharkwal, and municipal commissioner Gaurav Kumar. Commissioner Kumar later confirmed the building posed a serious risk to the public. A demolition notice was served to the property owner, and the mayor warned that if the owner fails to take action, the LMC will demolish the structure at the owner's cost. However, the incident has exposed deeper flaws in the LMC's system. Officials admit that updates to the list of dangerous buildings have been irregular. A total of 208 structures have been identified across eight zones: 97 in Zone 1, 56 in Zone 2, 10 in Zone 3, 4 in Zone 4, 1 in Zone 5, and 40 in Zone 6, while Zones 7 and 8 report none. However, some corporators allege that if the engineering department conducts a proper survey, the number of dilapidated buildings would be higher in wards where the current count is zero or in single digits. The civic body claims that a fresh city-wide survey is underway to identify more such structures. Officials say vacate notices are being issued and demolition orders are being prepared, but they refused to share exact details. In 2023, five people were killed in the Fateh Ali Ka Talab railway colony (Zone 5) after a roof collapse in a similarly unsafe structure. Despite this, LMC's enforcement appears to remain weak. An LMC official, speaking on condition of anonymity, revealed that legal complications and court cases surrounding many such properties are a key hurdle. "No engineer wants to be dragged into legal disputes, especially when property ownership is unclear," the official said. Chief engineer Mahesh Varma admitted, "We can list these buildings, but the power to demolish lies with the police." However, LMC chief Gaurav Kumar has issued new instructions to conduct physical surveys across all wards and ensure residents living in unsafe buildings are shifted to safer locations. Principal secretary, urban development, Amrit Abhijat said, "I have directed all municipal corporations to prepare a list of dilapidated buildings and take action as per the law."...