Another body retrieved from Delhi building collapse site, toll rises to 3

The toll in the three-storey building collapse in Old Delhi’s Hauz Qazi area rose to three on Saturday after the body of another labourer was recovered from the debris during the ongoing rescue operations, officials said.

The deceased has been identified as Pankaj Sharma (40), a resident of Hanuman Nagar village in Bihar’s Khagaria district, they said.

After nearly 48 hours of operation at the site, five people have been pulled out of the debris — three dead and two injured persons. Both injured persons have received medical treatment and are stable.

The building under construction collapsed in Gali Sitara near Chawri Bazar Metro station around 9.45 am on Thursday. The operation to find more people and clear the rubble continued at the site.

Around 10 to 15 labourers were present at the construction site when the three-storey structure came crashing down, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Central) Rohit Rajbir Singh had said.

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Earlier, two labourers, identified as Kishori (40) and Sanjeet (45), were declared dead, while Sahdev Chaudhary (25) and Firoz (37) were rescued with injuries. Locals had also rescued four people from the debris.

The building was allegedly being constructed without the requisite approval on a 50-square-metre plot. An MCD official had said no building plan was sanctioned for the structure.

The civic body had also said the construction had reached the third floor and the building collapsed while the roof slab was being laid. The material used was non-engineered and had not set properly, the official had said.

In June, the Delhi Police had flagged unauthorised construction at the property. In a communication dated June 15, the SHO of Hauz Qazi police station had informed the MCD’s City Sadar Paharganj Zone about the construction work and identified the landowner and contractor as Furqan.

Police have registered an FIR under Section 105 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita for culpable homicide not amounting to murder against the building owners and contractors. Efforts are underway to trace the builders.