Delhi Police to monitor under-construction buildings by deploying drones

In a bid to enhance building safety and prevent disasters, the Delhi Police will begin monitoring under-construction structures using drones and artificial intelligence (AI), an official announced on Tuesday.

The AI-powered system is expected to play a crucial role in identifying structural vulnerabilities and enabling rapid emergency responses—potentially saving lives and averting tragedies.

A senior Delhi police officer explained that while drones are already used intermittently for surveillance of sensitive areas, they will now also be deployed to detect unauthorised construction activity. “We will monitor whether residential or commercial structures are being built beyond permissible limits,” the officer stated.

Experts will use drone footage to generate AI-based structural models, which will offer insights into potential hazards, provide detailed roadmaps of the area, and guide emergency assistance efforts during adverse situations, the officer added.

The initiative comes in the wake of a fatal building collapse that occurred in the early hours of Saturday. A 20-year-old, four-storey structure crumbled, killing 11 people—including three children—and injuring 11 others. The ground floor housed four shops.

“The collapse was traced to the removal of a supporting pillar between two shops on Friday to make space for a third. This pillar was critical to the building’s stability,” the officer explained. Residents reportedly noticed tremors around 11 PM on Friday but assumed it was a minor earthquake.

Another Delhi police official confirmed that the AI-generated data will be shared with other investigating agencies involved in the collapse probe. “These AI-based reports are immensely valuable in enabling timely interventions by various departments, potentially saving lives,” he said. He further noted that district-level police officials would be instructed to maintain updated structural records for their respective areas.

In a separate incident on April 11, a 67-year-old man lost his life and another sustained serious injuries after construction material fell from a building in the Chander Vihar area during a dust storm. The debris, which reportedly came from an unauthorised sixth-floor addition to a five-storey building, struck the victims as they passed by around 6:30 PM.

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A video of the incident, which circulated widely on social media, shows bricks falling onto the road, fatally injuring one of the pedestrians, Chander Pal.

These incidents have prompted renewed focus on construction safety in the capital, with authorities seeking to prevent similar tragedies through advanced surveillance and technology-led interventions.