HP five-storey building collapse: Owners registers complaint against NHAI for negligence

Shimla, Jul 1 (PTI) A day after a five-storey building collapsed in Himachal Pradesh's Bhatakuffar, its owner lodged a police complaint, accusing the National Highway Authority of India (NHAI) and the company engaged in the four-laning of a road of negligence that led to the incident.

The owner, Ranjana Verma, alleged that cracks had already appeared near her building due to the four-laning work, and the structure collapsed on Monday morning amid heavy rain.

The development came hours after Himachal Pradesh minister Anirudh Singh was booked for wrongful restraint and voluntarily causing hurt after he allegedly assaulted two NHAI officials while inspecting the building collapse site.

The building at Mathu Colony on the road to Chamiyana Super Speciality Hospital caved in on Monday, but there were no casualties. Two adjoining buildings were also endangered.

Verma said, "We vacated the building on Sunday night as the land was sliding after Saturday's rain. The building collapsed around 8.15 am on Monday morning." She added that a four-lane road construction had endangered the structure, but no measures were taken to ensure its safety.

According to Chamiyana gram panchayat's deputy chief Yashpal Verma, cracks had developed in the building last year, but officials of the company constructing the Kaithlighat-Dhalli four-lane road had assured them that the structure was safe.

He alleged that negligence on the part of the construction company led to the collapse of the building and said the panchayat had written to the firm to stop work as it was rendering buildings unsafe.

Shimla Superintendent of Police Sanjeev Gandhi visited the collapse site after the residents met him in the office and sought action against NHAI after six more houses developed cracks.

A case under the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) sections 125 (acts endangering life or personal safety of others) and 324(4) (mischief causing loss or damage to property) has been registered at the Dhalli police station, the officer said.

Meanwhile, Himachal Pradesh Public Works Minister Vikramaditya Singh, who also visited the spot on Tuesday, raised questions on the 90-degree cutting being done by the construction company and said the matter would be raised with Union Minister for Road Transport and Highways Nitin Gadkari.

He requested Chief Minister Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu to form a high-power committee to monitor the four-lane construction work. PTI BPL NSD NSD