Dozens injured after building falls on canteen in Delhi's Saidulajab

MOre than a dozen people were maimed at Saidulajab nigh Saket subway system post in southward Delhi after a four-storey under-construction building collapsed and fell on an adjacent canteen, where students were having dinner on Saturday evening, officials from the fire and police departments said.At least eight people were rescued from the debris, while four to six more, including a woman who ran the kitchen canteen, were feared trapped. Search and rescue operations were continuing till the time of going to press. The rescued people, who suffered injuries, were rushed to AIIMS Trauma Centre.“The people who have been rescued were all alive. They have been sent to the hospital for treatment. We are making efforts to rescue other trapped people,” said additional DCP (South) Aishwarya Singh.Delhi Fire Services (DFS) officials said that at 7:44pm, the fire control room received a call regarding a house collapse at Western Marg, Saidulajab, near Saket Metro station. Initially, three fire tenders along with rescue teams were rushed.“Around 8:30pm, fire station officer Mukul Bhardwaj informed that a complete building having multiple floors had collapsed,” said DFS divisional officer and additional spokesperson Rajinder Atwal.Expressing concern, Delhi chief minister Rekha Gupta stated the situation is being closely monitored and that every effort is being made to rescue those trapped and to provide immediate assistance to the affected families.The building comprised a ground and three upper floors, and construction was ongoing on the top floor, officials and locals said. However, it was not immediately clear whether construction activities were active and labourers were present when the building collapsed.Three people were already rescued safely before fire teams reached. The rescue teams of DFS, National Disaster Response Force (NDRF), District Disaster Management Authority (DDMA), and civil defence rescued five more injured people by around 10:50pm. Hospital officials said at least five patients were stable, and no deaths were reported till the time of going to print.Another police officer said a case will be registered at Mehrauli police station to probe the exact cause and also investigate whether rules were being violated in construction and land-use regulations.People who had relatives or acquaintances trapped under the debris, could be seen anxiously waiting near the site.Shah Zaffar, 26, who studies at the library, said he was at the site when the building collapsed. “I was on the ground floor at around 7:30pm and heard a loud noise, and ran out to see that the adjoining building was collapsing. I saw 10-15 people run outside and helped gather everyone at an empty space nearby.”