1 killed, 4 injured as portion of Delhi’s Gokulpuri Metro station collapses

One man died and four people were injured after a section of the Gokulpuri Metro station in northeast Delhi collapsed onto commuters. Police have registered a case against the Metro contractors and builders, and the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation has suspended two officials for negligence. The station was shut for repairs for 8 hours after the incident. The Metro corporation has announced compensation for the victims.

One man died and four people were injured after a section of the Gokulpuri Metro station in northeast Delhi collapsed onto commuters travelling along a busy thoroughfare on Thursday morning.

The incident took place around 11am, said police, when chunks of the Gokulpuri station’s wall crumbled and fell onto Chaprana Road, over which the terminal is built. (Sanchit Khanna/HT Photo)

The police registered a case against the Metro contractors and builders under sections 337 (rash and negligent act) and 304A (causing death by negligence) (causing death by negligence) of the Indian Penal Code, while the Delhi Metro Rail Corporation (DMRC) suspended two officials for negligence, as the incident triggered outrage among residents and on social media.

The deceased man was identified as Vinod Kumar Pandey (53), a resident of nearby Karawal Nagar. The injured people were identified as three relatives — Ajit Kumar (21), a resident of Loni; Monu Kumar (19) and Sandeep Kumar (27) from Gokulpuri — and Mohammed Tazir (24), also from Loni.

The Metro station, which is on the Pink Line, between Majlis Park and Shiv Vihar, was built in 2018.

The incident took place around 11am, said police, when chunks of the Gokulpuri station’s wall crumbled and fell onto Chaprana Road, over which the terminal is built.

The large concrete lumps collapsed onto commuters on the busy arterial stretch, flattening cars, two-wheelers and three-wheelers, said bystanders.

Speaking to HT at Guru Teg Bahadur Hospital’s emergency ward, Sandeep said that the three of them were riding a scooter when they noticed slabs caking off the Metro station.

“We swerved and hit the divider. Both of us sustained minor injuries but Ajit has a fractured right leg,” he said.

People working at a nearby gas agency who were sitting near the overhead station rushed to rescue people, extricating two from the debris in around half an hour.

“We heard a loud thud. We didn’t realise what had happened till we saw that the slabs had fallen. Several of us rushed to the spot and saw people stuck and bleeding. All of them were unconscious,” said Vishal Gupta, 32, LPG cylinder supplier who helped rescue the injured.

“An earthmover that was at work in a nearby drain came to the site first and began debris. Fire department officials also arrived by then,” Gupta said.

Pandey was on his way from his house in Karawal Nagar to Dilshad Garden to supply rice. He was trapped under the debris from the damaged slab. He was pulled out by local residents and police and fire officials. He sustained grievous injuries and was rushed to Guru Teg Bahadur hospital where doctors declared him dead. Pandey worked with his uncle, who is a rice trader.

The station was shut for repairs for 8hours between 11am and 8pm on Thursday.

A portion of the slab hung off precariously for hours after the incident, prompting officials to slice it off using gas cutters and earthmovers around 4:30pm.

DMRC officials said a manager and a junior engineer from the civil department were suspended after the incident, pending an enquiry.

“The executive director (civil) is at the site for a first-hand assessment of the situation apart from officials from all concerned departments,” said Anuj Dayal, principal executive director of corporate communications, DMRC.

The Metro corporation also announced an ex-gratia of ₹25 lakh for the deceased’s family, ₹5 lakh to those with serious injuries and ₹1 lakh for those who sustained minor injuries.