Dubai Municipality, on Sunday, announced a February 14 deadline for violators to “remove irregularities and correct their status,” a warning that also applies to bachelors who live in overcrowded villas.

“It should be noted that after this date, the Municipality will cut services to these buildings and the residences and demolish and remove the irregularities. Hence, it is requested to act accordingly and be committed in implementing it,” the civic body said in a public announcement issued on Sunday.

The announcement said this was “in order to activate the role of community partnership in its efforts to maintain the emirate of Dubai free of building violations and unplanned growth (that) Dubai Municipality calls upon landlords and tenants who are violating building rules such as overcrowding families and bachelors that they should participate in these efforts...”

The One Villa-One Family Campaign began in 2008 and hundreds of low-income families were forced to move out of shared villas.

Omar Mohammed Abdul Rahman, Head of Building Inspection Section at the department, had said that inspections in villas would continue, and amenities like water, electricity and sewage would be disconnected to force the tenants to leave crowded villas.

 sajila@khaleejtimes.com