The Kerala High Court on Friday (June 12, 2026) directed the committee led by the Ernakulam District Collector to proceed with the demolition of the twin towers of the Chander Kunj Army apartment complex at Vyttila, developed by the Army Welfare Housing Organisation (AWHO).
P.K. Unique Project Limited, the petitioner, approached the High Court seeking directions to issue a ‘confirmation of work’ for demolishing the B and C towers in the housing complex. The company challenged the committee’s decision to award the work to another firm, Edifice Engineering.
Justice R. Narayana Pisharadi refused to stay the committee’s decision to finalise the tender in favour of Edifice Engineering for the demolition work, even though the company had placed second in the financial bid. P.K. Unique Project Limited, the petitioner, had submitted the lowest quotation.
The State, represented by Additional Advocate General Muhammad Shah, argued that the contract was awarded to Edifice Engineering based on its technical expertise and experience in the safe demolition of buildings without any impact on adjacent structures. He further argued that the evaluation of the tender carried a 70% weightage for technical capabilities and 30% for the financial bid.
Edifice Engineering secured the top rank in the bid evaluation, while the petitioner was placed third. Edifice had also executed the demolition of the Maradu apartment complexes, he informed the court.
The High Court had ordered the demolition and reconstruction of the towers, citing serious structural issues. The decision affected 208 apartment owners, who were compensated by the AWHO with a total of ₹2.97 crore, at the rate of ₹30,000 per month for B Tower owners and ₹35,000 per month for C Tower owners.
Published – June 13, 2026 01:35 am IST
