Surat building cave-in toll rises to 7; 1 held
According to the Surat Police, the building was in a dilapidated condition for a long time, and residents had complained about water leakage and cracks
At least seven bodies have been recovered, so far, from the site of a five-storey building collapse in Surat district of Gujarat, police said on Sunday, adding that three people, including two owners of the building, have booked on charges of culpable homicide not amounting to murder while one of them has been arrested.
The eight-year-old Kailash Raj Residency, which was in a dilapidated condition and located in Sachin Pali village of Surat, collapsed at around 2.30 pm on Saturday amid incessant rain in the region for several days. As per the FIR, the dilapidated building was mostly vacant as the earlier occupants had left due to the danger it posed. Around six of the flats were occupied, mostly by those who worked in factories in the area.
Sachin GIDC police station inspector Jignesh Chaudhari said a team of the National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), two teams of the State Disaster Response Force (SDRF), police personnel and fire brigade were involved in the overnight rescue operation.
“A total of eight people got buried under the collapsed structure, and only one was rescued alive,” he added.
Police have identified the six deceased as Hiraman Kevat (40), Abhishek (35), Brijesh God (50), Shivpujan Kevat (26), Anmol Harijan (17), Parvesh Kevat (21), and Lalji Kevat (40) — all textile workers from Madhya Pradesh and Uttar Pradesh.
“An FIR has been registered against three people — building owners Raj Kakadiya and his mother Ramilaben Kakadiya and one Ashwin Vekariya, who collected rent from the occupants — under several sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, including 105 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder),” said Chaudhari, adding that Vekariya has been arrested and efforts are underway to nab the two other two accused.
Raj Kakadiya is currently in the US, while police are on the lookout for his mother, he said.
According to the Surat Police, the building was in a dilapidated condition for a long time, and residents had complained about water leakage and cracks.
“The residents/tenants had repeatedly complained about this to Ashwin Vekariya. The Surat Municipal Corporation had issued warnings against residing in the building due to potential danger. Despite this, the building owners and Ashwinbhai Vekariya, who was responsible for rent collection and building maintenance, continued to rent out flats and collect rent without carrying out necessary repairs,” it said.
Surat district collector Dr Sourabh Pardhi, however, said that he was unaware of any such notice being issued, but the SMC had issued a notice to the building’s owner for strengthening the building as part of pre-monsoon checks on April 26 this year.
“The building was constructed in 2016. It was then part of the gram panchayat and it came under Surat Urban Development Authority (SUDA) in 2020. The lady who was rescued recounted the incident and said it felt like an earthquake. Prima facie, it looks like there was an issue with one of the pillars and that the building had collapsed from one side as a result,” he said.
