Gurugram building collapse: Three dead, one severely injured

The police said that the debris was cleared in a 19-hour-long rescue operation but that the reason for the collapse is still unclear

After a three-storey building collapsed on Sunday evening in Khawaspur village of Farrukhnagar, leaving three people dead and one severely injured, police on Monday detained the manager of the company that owned the building and its premises.

Teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) teams, civil defence, police and fire brigade carried out rescue operations even as incessant rains delayed work on Monday morning. (ANI)

Police said the structure was owned by Deluxe Cargo Logistics and served as a residence for its employees. It is located on the Pataudi-Farrukhnagar road, around 2.5km from the Kundli-Manesar-Palwal (KMP) Expressway.

The police said there were fewer residents than usual in the building as it was a Sunday. The unharmed residents are in a state of shock and they were shifted to different premises on Monday.

The police said the debris was cleared after a 19-hour rescue operation but the reason for the collapse is still unclear. The three people who died were identified as Robin (34) (single name), Pradeep Sharma (39) and Tiny Bhardwaj (24). A fourth resident, Pradeep Choudhary (36), was rescued on Sunday evening with severe injuries.

Based on a complaint from an employee of Deluxe Cargo Logistics, a case was registered against the company owner, Ravinder Kataria, and manager, Krishan Kaushik, under sections 288 (negligent conduct with respect to pulling down or repairing buildings), 34 (common intention) and 304 (II) (culpable homicide not amounting to murder) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) that carries a maximum punishment of 10 years at Farrukhnagar police station on Monday.

The police said that Kataria is allegedly on the run and his mobile phones have been switched off since Sunday night.

Teams of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), State Disaster Response Force (SDRF) teams, civil defence, police and fire brigade carried out rescue operations even as incessant rain delayed work on Monday morning, officials said.

Shri Niwas, an assistant commandant of NDRF, said so far, there is no report on the cause of the collapse but the building had required repair. “Our two teams, comprising 60 personnel, reached the site on Sunday night and the operations got over by 3pm on Monday. We faced challenges due to weather conditions and there was also no building plan, which further delayed our operations. Our canine squad played an important role in identifying the location where people were trapped under debris,” he said.

Yash Garg, deputy commissioner of Gurugram, said they have formed a team to probe the collapse. He said NDRF and SDRF were contacted as soon as he received information of the collapse, around 7.30pm on Sunday. “Initially, we feared that over 20 persons were trapped under the debris, but preliminary reports and locals revealed that there are only four persons. Two others managed to escape before the building collapsed,” he said.

Garg also already directed the Pataudi subdivisional magistrate to conduct a probe into the case.

Vijay Kumar (35), a resident of Bhiwani, who has been working with Cargo Deluxe for the past year and is the complainant in the case, said the building was not in a good condition and they had already informed the manager and owner about this. “Around 7pm, my colleague and I were sleeping when we heard loud cracking sounds. We rushed out without a second thought and as soon as we stepped out, the building collapsed in front of our eyes,” Kumar said.

KK Rao, the commissioner of police, said they have recorded statements of the employees who resided in the building and strict action will be taken against those responsible. “Our teams reached the spot within 10 minutes of receiving the call and coordinated with other agencies. The area has been cordoned off,” he said.

The police said the company owner, Ravinder Kataria, is a former chairman of the Nagar Parishad, Gurugram. Officials of the Deluxe Cargo Logistics did not respond to requests for comment.

RS Bhath, the district town planner of the enforcement wing, said the department will look into the legality of this building and whether permission was taken to construct it. “The DTCP team remained on the spot during the entire rescue operation and supported the police and other agencies. A probe to identify the reasons behind the collapse would be conducted by the district administration, while we will look into the legality of the structure. As the building was old, there could be several reasons (for the collapse),” said Bhath.

Niwas said they used live detector types 1 and 2, cutting tools and lifting bags in the rescue operation. “Bhardwaj’s body was retrieved from the staircase and it seemed that he tried to run from the first floor to the roof when the building collapsed on him,” he said.

Dr Deepak Mathur, the forensic expert who conducted the autopsies, said that the trio died of excessive bleeding. “There were severe head injuries; multiple fractures all over the body,” he said.