5 die as under-construction warehouse collapses in Kolkata; design flaw, says CM

FIve labourers died and 20 were injured after a three-storey under-construction common soldier storage warehouse in due westward Bengal’s Taratala country of west Kolkata collapsed on Wednesday afternoon, chief minister Suvendu Adhikari said.Of the five deceased, two have been identified as Rohit Chowdhury and Krishna Chowdhury, he said.“Of the 20 people who survived, two are in extremely critical condition,” Adhikari said. “All five people were declared dead on arrival at the hospital,” he said.Health minister Sharadwat Mukherjee said most of the people suffered multiple fractures.“Since the legislative assembly is in session I will announce compensation for the victims and action to be taken by the government when the House meets tomorrow,” the CM said. “Not all the injured people required hospitalisation. Ten or eleven people are admitted to the SSKM Hospital. The others walked out of the site on their own,” he added.Adhikari said that the Kolkata Municipal Corporation (KMC) indicated the building plan was flawed and possibly passed by the Trinamool Congress (TMC)-controlled civic body in exchange for money.“This did not happen because of the rain. I saw that the bolts had come off the steel beams. Quality was compromised in exchange for money,” he said.“The incident happened at 12.07pm and rescue operations by police, KMC, and the fire brigade department started at 12.45pm. Between 1.30 and 2pm, the army and National Disaster Response Force (NDRF) joined the operation. It is continuing. Around 12-14 people are still trapped under the debris. They have been provided with water and oxygen,” he added. Cranes and gas cutters were used to remove the steel and concrete beams.“KMC officials told me that such equipment is available only with the army and the NDRF. They reacted promptly. This coordination was missing earlier. People used to talk about parties, Centre, state etc. Had the operations not been so fast, many would have died today,” Adhikari said.Located in the industrial zone between Taratala and Brace Bridge, the construction site, measuring 6,689 square meters, was taken on lease by a Kolkata-based business group, Behera Brothers, from the Syama Prasad Mookerjee Port Kolkata (SMPK) which owns most of the land in that region. Established in 1970, Behera Brothers offers storage and warehousing services.“Shambhu Nath Behera, a partner in Behera Brothers, took the land on lease from SMPK. The building plan was passed by the KMC on January 17, 2026. The KMC building department has initially told me that the plan is flawed. The details will be revealed during investigation,” Adhikari said.Behera Brothers have not given any statement as of now.According to the information given to police by the labourers, Asgar, a TMC leader from the Katapukur area, was the project’s contractor.Referring to the warehouse fire in which at least 20 people died in Kolkata’s Kasba area in January this year, Adhikari said, “These were all sanctioned in exchange for money. We will look into everything. I have directed that KMC, the Public Works Department, Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority, the fire brigade, the police, and civil defence must examine all under-construction sites in the city. KMC will coordinate this.”The civic body has been administered by KMC commissioner Smita Pandey, an IAS officer, since June 5 when TMC’s Firhad Hakim resigned as mayor following his party’s defeat to the Bharatiya Janata Party in the assembly polls.Hakim, who joined the rebel TMC MLAs, said he knew nothing about the construction.“A private company was building the warehouse on land belonging to the port authorities. We never visit these places because there are no human habitations and therefore, no public service is involved. I am not an engineer and cannot comment on building plans or inferior materials. I only went to the hospital to inquire about the injured,” Hakim said.Urban development minister Agnimitra Paul and health minister Dr Sharadwat Mukherjee, among others also rushed to the spot to oversee the rescue operation.“The illegal constructions were allowed by the former government. But this is not the time to look into that. We have to first rescue those who are trapped under the debris,” minister of state for youth and sports services Dr Indranil Khan, the MLA from the adjacent assembly seat, said at the accident site.