As heavy rains continue to wreak havoc across Himachal Pradesh, panic gripped Shimla’s Bhatakufar area on Monday morning after a five-storey residential building collapsed. Though no casualties were reported, the incident has sparked anger and fear among residents, who blame the ongoing highway widening project for the structural failure.
Locals allege that excessive stone cutting and excavation carried out as part of the road expansion, supervised by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), destabilised the land and triggered the collapse. Many now fear for their own homes, several of which have already developed cracks.
LR Kondal, a local resident who was at the site, said, "You can see it live, sliding has already started right outside my building. The most shocking part is that the NHAI contractor dug up the area to extract stone, and this has completely destabilised everything.”
"They kept working day and night. When the first slide happened, we approached them and asked them to stop, but they did nothing. Their facial expressions made it clear they weren't going to act. Now that the building has collapsed, everyone is panicking. My building has developed cracks too," he added.
Kondal said, "We stayed awake all night in the rain, standing outside in the same clothes. We managed to rescue the elderly and children. All our belongings are still inside. We had already warned the family living in the collapsed building to vacate and remove their possessions, which they did."
"There are still three to four houses that could collapse anytime. We've all been rendered homeless and are now sheltering wherever we can." He said.
Residents are now demanding accountability from the company carrying out the construction and the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI). Local MLA and Cabinet Minister Anirudh Singh visited the site along with district officials to take stock of the situation.
The authorities have assured a fair and thorough inquiry, and a structural assessment of nearby buildings is already underway. Meanwhile, relief and rehabilitation efforts are in progress to support affected families.
Shimla Rural Sub-Divisional Magistrate (SDM) Manjeet Sharma confirmed that the building belonged to a woman named Ranjana and had been vacated as a safety precaution last night. Officials have also evacuated five nearby buildings considered at risk of similar collapse, putting residents’ safety first as the rain continues to pose challenges.
"At around 8:00 AM, a five-storey building belonging to Smt. Ranjana collapsed. The building had been evacuated last night itself. There are three to four more buildings adjacent to it which are vulnerable. We've vacated all of them. Thankfully, there has been no loss of life," SDM Sharma told reporters.
Sharma further mentioned that the collapse may be linked to the ongoing four-lane highway widening work in the area, which is being carried out by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI).
"It appears the ground has loosened due to the highway construction work, especially due to heavy machinery being used for stone excavation. However, this is a technical issue, and we will only be able to confirm the exact reason after a detailed inquiry," he said.
"Some stabilisation efforts were made by the company earlier, but they seemingly did not work. A civil engineering team will assess the structural safety of the remaining buildings. Those that are unsafe will remain vacated until further notice," Sharma added.
The SDM further added that as per the Disaster Relief Manual, immediate assistance is being extended to the affected residents. So far, ten families have been relocated to safer places.
"As of now, we have shifted ten families, including both owners and tenants, from the five vacated buildings. Relief measures are underway. If the inquiry finds the company or NHAI responsible, compensation will be arranged accordingly," Sharma said.
Follow us
