Questions over possible repair work and water accumulation in the basement have emerged after a five-storey building housing a boys’ hostel collapsed in south Delhi’s Satya Niketan on Sunday, killing at least three people and leaving five others critically injured.
While residents in the area said repair work had been underway and water had accumulated in the basement following days of rain, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) said it could not establish whether any work was being carried out until the debris was removed.
The building, known locally as ‘Hostel Daze’, was nearly 30 years old and stood on a plot of around 55 square yards in a resettlement colony. A senior MCD official said permission in the area was limited to a ground-plus-one structure, while the collapsed building had four floors above the ground floor.
The official said the structure was in violation of building norms.
The MCD has also evacuated and sealed a building adjoining the collapsed structure after finding it in a dilapidated condition.
MCD Deputy Commissioner (South) Rakesh Kumar said all tenants, including those staying in the girls’ PG there, had been shifted to a nearby community hall. The building will be demolished, he said.
“The structure next to the collapsed building appears to be in a dilapidated condition. It has been sealed and will be demolished. All the tenants in the next building have been shifted to the nearest community hall,” Kumar said.
Two hydra machines, four JCBs, around half-a-dozen pickup trucks and 30-40 MCD personnel have been deployed for the rescue and clearance operation, Kumar said.
On reports of repair work in the basement, he said, “the debris had not yet been cleared and there was no way to ascertain whether any such work was taking place.”
“Sealing operations were already going on in this area and now further strict action will be taken,” Kumar said.
The collapse took place in a congested lane in Satya Niketan, near Delhi University’s South Campus, on Sunday afternoon. Officials said several unauthorised paying guest accommodations and hostels have come up in the area.
Rescue operations continued through the day, with teams from the Delhi Police, National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), Delhi Fire Service and other agencies at the site. Two NDRF teams comprising around 70 personnel, along with a canine squad, have been deployed. Oxygen cylinders were also lowered into the debris amid efforts to reach those who may still be trapped.
The exact number of people beneath the rubble remains unclear. Local residents said several people could still be trapped inside the collapsed structure.