Mohali building collapse: 2 dead, rescue operation ends, magisterial probe ordered

CHANDIGARH: The collapse of a three-storey building in Punjab's Mohali has claimed two lives, with rescuers pulling out the body of a man and a fatally injured woman from under the rubble during a multi-agency 23-hour rescue operation that concluded Sunday evening, officials said.

A magisterial probe has been ordered into the incident which, according to a preliminary inquiry, occurred during alleged unauthorised digging in the adjacent plot belonging to one of the owners of the building.

Drishti Verma, 20, from Himachal Pradesh, was rescued from the rubble in critical condition and was rushed to a hospital, where she succumbed to injuries on Saturday night, while the body of Abhishek Dhanwal, 29, was pulled out on Sunday.

Besides the two owners of the building, the contractor undertaking the digging work has also been booked, the officials said, adding strict action will be taken against anyone found responsible.

The building owners -- Parwinder Singh and Gagandeep Singh -- were booked at Sohana police station under Section 105 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) on Saturday night, SSP Deepak Pareek said.

A short video clip circulating on social media purportedly of the incident shows the building, which housed a gym and paying guest accommodations, tilting to one side before collapsing. The building also had a basement.

Some eyewitness claimed that an onlooker had raised an alarm as the building shook and a few occupants had safely come out before it came crashing down.

They said that Abhishek, who visited the gym, went back inside to fetch his mobile phone and was trapped.

Viraj S Tidke, officiating deputy commissioner of Mohali, said that Sub Divisional Magistrate of Mohali Damandeep Kaur has been entrusted with the probe and asked to submit the report within three weeks.

He said that the debris had been checked by the NDRF thoroughly before declaring the operation complete.The whole operation was closely monitored by the district civil and police officials till its completion, the official said.

"(Mohali) District administration completed the 23-hour-long constant rescue operation with the help of NDRF and Army as key players", besides the police, municipal corporation and health department at Mohali (Sohana) building collapse site at 4:30 pm today, an official statement said.

Initially, it was feared that at least five people were trapped under the rubble, prompting rescue efforts to continue overnight to find possible survivors.

"The operation continued during the night also. As per the NDRF report, they have scanned the entire area" and ruled out the possibility of anyone else trapped under the debris, according to Tidke.

Earlier in the day, Abhishek's father told reporters at the site that his son, who used to visit the gym in the building, was missing and his phone was not reachable.

Abhishek worked in the IT sector and used to live in a nearby area, his father said.

"In addition to the three accused named in the building collapse incident, if during the inquiry role of more people comes up, whether in government or a private person, strict action as per law will be taken," Tidke said.

Mohali Senior Superintendent of Police Deepak Pareek told reporters at the site on Sunday that as per preliminary investigations an owner of the building, which collapsed, had a plot of land adjacent to it on which digging work to construct a basement was on.

"However, no permission was taken and no agency concerned was informed about the unauthorised digging," Pareek said.

He said that the accused will be nabbed soon.

Strict action will be taken so that a strong message goes and such incidents do not reoccur, the SSP said.

Several excavators were pressed into service as part of the rescue operation. National Disaster Response Team (NDRF), Army, and state rescue teams worked since Saturday evening at the site.

Briefing the media after the completion of the rescue operation, Tidke along with other officials said that about 140 NDRF team members, 167 from the Army's 57 Engineers Regiment, over 300 from local police and the rest from allied departments were involved in the operation.

Leader of Opposition in Punjab Assembly Partap Singh Bajwa slammed the Mohali district administration over the incident.

The senior Congress leader, who visited the site, told reporters that he has learnt that some structures have been built in the area in flagrant violation of rules.

"Accountability should be fixed in the matter. As head of district administration, personally, I hold the Deputy Commissioner responsible.

If proper measures are not taken, "after a few months another building will collapse and this will continue. So accountability has to be fixed", Bajwa said.

He asked the administration to take necessary precautions to ensure such incidents are not repeated in the future.