At least seven people, including two women, were killed and several others injured after an under-construction five-storey building collapsed in the Garden Reach area of Kolkata, police said on Monday.
While Md Wasim, the promoter of the building, was arrested, the mayor said stringent action would be taken as per law.
Mayor Firhad Hakim said. Police and disaster management teams swiftly evacuated 13 people, while the search is on for survivors who may be trapped under the rubble.
West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee also visited the incident site on Monday morning and announced compensation to the next of kin of each deceased and the injured persons.
This was an illegal construction and some people were already living in the building.
“Sad to learn about the house collapse disaster of an under-construction building in the Garden Reach area of the Kolkata Municipal Corporation. Our Mayor, Fire Minister, Secretaries and Commissioner of Police, civic, police, fire and disaster management officers and teams (including NDRF, KMC and KP teams) have been on site throughout the night for mitigating the disaster,” the West Bengal CM posted on X.
“Our government provide compensation for the next of kin of the deceased and for the injured persons. We stand by the distressed families and rescue operations shall continue,” she added.
According to eyewitnesses, the incident took place after midnight. The entire structure collapsed. There was a loud sound and a thick cloud of dust engulfed the area as the building collapsed. No one lived in the under-construction building, said a local resident.
Locals reported that construction on the building had been ongoing for the past six months. Additionally, they claimed that the structure lacked proper authorisation from both the Kolkata Municipal Corporation and the police.
Kolkata Police Commissioner Vineet Goyal inspected the site and assessed the progress of the rescue efforts. The rescue operation is still underway.
“We have rescued people. They have been hospitalised. Rescue operations are on and we are searching for any person who may be trapped. So far, there is no report of a death. It is a congested area and we are taking all precautions while searching the area,” he said to a reporter.
Leader of Opposition in the West Bengal Assembly Suvendu Adhikari in a post on X (formerly known as Twitter) said, “I urge @chief_west, Secretary @HomeBengal, @CPKolkata to immediately involve West Bengal State Disaster Management Team for immediate Rescue & Relief.” “I am receiving frantic calls regarding probable casualties. Please dispatch any team which can help in rescuing the victims, be it Fire Servicemen, Police or any other team,” he said.
Additionally, Indranil Khan, the state Bharatiya Janata Party Yuva Morcha president, tweeted, “The catastrophic collapse of an unauthorised illegal building at Azhar Molla Bagan in KMC Ward No 134, Garden Reach area, crushing and trapping several people including children underneath, is a fatal consequence of the corrupt civic system in Kolkata running in tandem with TMC-backed syndicate mafia. While we appeal for immediate and adequate measures from the state administration Police, Fire Brigade, Disaster Management teams for rescue of the trapped and optimum treatment of the injured.”
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