DOHA: The Ministry of Municipality and Urban Planning organised a workshop for its inspectors of buildings and excavations to familiarise them with new construction and excavation rules.
The workshop shed light a recent ministerial decree on the management of construction works in terms of control of site fencing requirements and requirements for occupation of sidewalks and specifications pertinent to the site board on work sites.
Minister of Municipality and Urban Planning H E Sheikh Abdul Rahman bin Khalifa Al Thani has issued three decisions on regulation of construction, maintenance and demolition works, including the Ministerial Decision No. 120 on site boards; Ministerial Decision No. 121 on fences on work sites, and Ministerial Decision No. 122 on occupation of sidewalks.
Omar Al Yafey, Director, Public Relations & Communications Department, Dr Salem Hamoud Al Shafi, Director, Municipal Control Department of Doha Municipality, and Dr Ahmed Abu Mustafa, Legal Adviser, Office of the Minister gave presentations at the workshop.
The workshop confirmed that the assigned role of inspectors in the first instance is an awareness role, not only regulatory one, as they are responsible for educating contracting companies and consultants at work sites on these decisions.
The workshop addressed regulations pertinent to site boards, and the ministerial decisions that committed contractors to install clearly noticeable boards at the entrance of construction sites, stating details of the project.
It also dealt with control and regulations for occupation of sidewalks, most important of which is the obligation of the contractor to install warning and direction boards and night lights in the work areas, along with installing necessary protection requirements, such as barriers and direction boards around excavations sites to alert and protect passers-by. The contractor shall restore the site to its original status, repair any flaw in sidewalks and remove any defective parts. The workshop also explained requirements for the fence around work sites in terms of general regulations for temporary fence works, and requirements for temporary fence around excavation sites. The Peninsula
