The crash site. At least 10 people, including four women and an infant, were killed when a four-storied residential building came crashing down in south Mumbai while 10 injured persons were rescued from the debris. Other 10-odd families are still believed trapped under the rubble of the Kesarbai Building in Dongri area after its rear illegal portion came crashing down around 11.30 a.m.
Those killed has been identified as Sabiya Nissar Shaikh, 25, Saira Rehan Shaikh, 25, K. Amirajan, 13, Sanaa Salmani, 25, Zuber Salmani, 20, Abdul Sattar Kaloo Shaikh, 55, Muzammil Mansoor Salmani, 15, Javed Ismail, 34, Arhan Shehzad, 40, and a toddler Ibrahim, 18 months, said a BMC spokesperson.
Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis ordered a probe into the building crash and assured strict action against those found guilty.
Opposition leaders like Vijay Wadettiwar, Prithviraj Chavan, Naseem Khan, Ashok Chavan, Milind Deora (Congress), Dhananjay Munde, Majeed Memon, Jayant Patil and Nawab Malik (Nationalist Congress Party), and Abu Asim Azmi (Samajwadi Party) among others lashed out at the government for lapses leading to the tragedy.
They demanded a detailed investigation into the causes leading to the accident, identifying the culprits and booking them under charges of culpable homicide not amounting to murder.
Meanwhile, an RTI activist said that the name of the dilapidated structure is mysteriously omitted from a comprehensive list of 499 “dangerous” buildings prepared by the BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC).
“The BMC, as per the directions of the Bombay High Court, had compiled the list of the dilapidated buildings, which we secured through an RTI reply. Shockingly, Kesarbai Building’s name is not mentioned anywhere in the list,” Shakeel Ahmed Sheikh said.
Later on Tuesday evening, the Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority’s (MHADA) chief spokesperson Vaishali Gadpale cleared the air on the building’s status.
In a statement, she said that the main dilapidated structure, Kesarbai Building 25/C was completely evacuated by the MHADA last year and the building which collapsed on Tuesday “was the illegal rear portion of this building which is not within the purview of the Mumbai Building Repair & Reconstruction Board”.
Earlier in the day, MBRRB Chairman Vinod Ghosalkar had said that the dilapidated structure, believed to be over 80 years old, had been handed over for redevelopment to B.S.B. Developers, which has not yet started the work.
“This is a serious matter and we shall investigate why the redevelopment work was not initiated, what caused the delays and take appropriate action against those responsible,” Ghosalkar said.
Among those rescued from the debris include five women, three men and two children aged 3 years each. They are being treated at various hospitals and the two minor males were discharged after treatment.
As a precautionary measure, the police evacuated all residents of an adjoining building and shifted them to a nearby school to facilitate the relief works.
However, narrow approach roads, huge crowds and thickly populated areas, besides continuous VVIP movements to the site, affected rescue operations.
The name of the dilapidated Kesarbai Building, whose illegal rear portion came crashing down is mysteriously omitted from a comprehensive list of 499 “dangerous” buildings prepared by the BrihanMumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC).
“The BMC, as per the directions of the Bombay High Court, had compiled the list of the dilapidated buildings, which we secured through an RTI reply. Shockingly, Kesarbai Building’s name is not mentioned anywhere in the list,” Shakeel Ahmed Sheikh told IANS.
As per RTI replies given by the BMC, from January 2013 till the day, Mumbai has witnessed a staggering 2,704 different types of structural collapses including buildings, walls, balconies, slabs, portions of homes, etc.
“This has resulted in 234 deaths, including 82 women and 152 men, besides injuring another 840, comprising 302 women and 538 men. Despite these tragedies, no steps have been taken by the BMC to demolish the buildings declared ‘dangerous’ in the past six years,” Sheikh said.
He said that back in 2014, a Bombay High Court Division Bench comprising Justice A.V. Mohta and Justice A.A. Sayed had directed the BMC to identify all dilapidated and dangerous buildings in Mumbai and put up their list on its website.
Based on the condition of the structures, the classifications are C2 – buildings which can be repaired, and C1 – buildings which cannot be repaired and must be demolished at the earliest, he added.
The court had also ordered the BMC to draw up the list irrespective of its ownership — whether private, government, BMC, or any other agency — and send notices to the occupants to vacate such buildings.
“It’s been five years since the court orders, but the BMC has done nothing to evacuate all these 499 dangerous (C1) buildings and demolish them. Another big tragedy is just waiting to happen anytime,” warned Sheikh.
Following a complaint by a resident, the BMC had served a notice to the Kesarbai Building owners, Bai Hirabai Rahimbhai Aloo Paroo and Bai Kesarbai Dharamsay Khakoo Charitable and Religious Trust, ordering them to carry out a structural audit of the structure.
On July 31, 2017, after the audit report was submitted, the building was classified as ‘C1’, to be evacuated immediately and demolished on priority.
However, a month later, the BMC learnt that the building actually came under the Maharashtra Housing & Area Development Authority (MHADA), and it had no jurisdiction.
Accordingly, on August 7, 2017, the BMC wrote to the Executive Engineer, Mumbai Building Repairs & Reconstruction Board (MBRRB) of MHADA, to take appropriate measures as per the high court orders (above) to prevent any loss of life.
At the same time, the BMC also washed its hands off the matter saying the civic body would not be responsible for any accident that befalls Kesarbai Building.
Sheikh said that on July 2, through his NGO Adhikar Foundation, he had written to BMC Commissioner Praveen Pardeshi to take immediate steps to demolish the 499 “dangerous” buildings in the city.
Exactly a fortnight later, the rear illegal portion of the Kesarbai Building 25/C crashed. (IANS)