Al Ain: Bachelors living in residential areas where families live have been warned to move to non-residential areas as the city municipality has launched an initiative against crowded bachelor accommodation in downtown Al Ain.
Many bachelors have been given notice to make the shift to Sanaiya (industrial area) and the Companies Area located on Mazyad Road.
“A municipality official has recently asked us to move to non-family areas,” said Murli Kumar, a pick-up truck driver who lives in Al Kuwaitat along with six other bachelors in a single room.
Al Kuwaitat is a family residential area in the heart of the city where a large number of bachelors also live in old houses that are divided into multiple rooms.
Mostly taxi drivers, shop owners, cleaning companies’ workers and labourers live in these poorly maintained dwellings.
It is against the municipal law to sub-let family accommodation or for bachelors to live in crowded rooms in residential neighbourhoods. The civic bodies in Abu Dhabi and Dubai have also taken action against violators of these bylaws, said a municipality official who preferred to remain anonymous He also confirmed that verbal notices have recently been served to bachelors and other violators in Al Kuwaitat. After the given deadlines, the municipality will take necessary action as per the law, he said.
He said the main problem of living in sharing or crowded accommodation is lack of hygiene as well as health and safety issues. At such places, utilities come under extra pressure and the overload causes the potential risk of fire hazards, he said.
Kumar said he had to vacate his room:.
“I have been living in this room for the last five years along with other roommates without any problem,” he said. Kumar and his roommates are now searching for accommodation in Sanaiya and the workers’ areas.
Imtiaz Khan, another bachelor in Al Kuwaitat, said finding a place in Sanaiya is a futile exercise as the area is already overcrowded and expensive. “I do not know where to go as my salary is just Dh800 and I cannot afford to live in expensive accommodation,” he said. Khan is currently paying Dh200 for a bed space in a small room where five other bachelors live.
Naseem Ahmad, a tailor who also received an eviction notice, said he lives with eight roommates and none of them could find accommodation in Sanaiya. “We are worried and helpless,” he said, adding that the city needs low-cost housing units for bachelors.
