‘Our dreams, home shattered’: 1 year on, Gurgaon’s Chintels society collapse still haunts residents

That day, Grover was standing on the balcony of his house on the 16th floor of Tower D while his wheelchair-bound 92-year-old mother was in her room when they heard a loud “explosion-like” sound. “I thought it was an earthquake. All I saw was plumes of dust around. My son, who was out, called me on the phone and said ‘Papa, wheelchair lekar maa ji ke saath neeche aao (papa, come downstairs with maa)’,” he said.

Grover, who has had a liver transplant, said he immediately rushed downstairs and for the next five days stayed at his brother’s house in Delhi. “There was so much panic. Some people were feared trapped, a mammoth rescue operation was on, it was like a scene in a movie… later that night, we learnt that two residents of our tower were dead,” he said.

Grover purchased a 3,150 sq foot flat in the society in 2017 and moved in August 2020 with his mother, son and daughter-in-law.

Like several other flat owners from tower D, his family has now been put up by the builder in a vacant flat in the same society. The family has a room full of their unpacked belongings from their previous home. “I put all my savings post retirement in the house. Now, we are living like refugees,” he added.

In November 2022, the Gurgaon deputy commissioner had passed an order, directing the developer to permanently close tower D — which has 18 floors and 64 flats — so its demolition could begin. The DC had said that on recommendations of a report by IIT-Delhi and an enquiry of the administration which found ‘structural deficiencies’, tower D had been deemed unsafe for habitation. The DC had said two more towers, E and F, where one of the balconies had sagged and distress in the floor of flats was reported, would be vacated and had directed the builder to settle dues of the allottees and flat owners for their resettlement in 60 days.

Several flat owners have been demanding reconstruction of the affected towers, resettlement and compensation terms, contending that the methodology of the estimates of flats by independent evaluators, appointed by the district administration, had been incorrect. Residents have planned a protest and a candle march on February 10 to demand action against the builder.

Bhupender Bhardwaj, who has a stock broking business, said he was among the first 10 families to move into the society five years ago. “All our money has gone to the dust now, ghar bhi toot gya aur sapne bhi (Our house and dreams both are shattered),” he said.

Recounting the incident, he remembers his son’s frantic phone call to him. “My 13-year-old son was in the lift of the tower. When he exited and saw the debris, he ran to the next tower and called me. My wife was in our 17th-floor house. She rushed downstairs… to this day, we do not talk about the incident. My son had palpitations, so we moved out of the society and have been staying on rent in Dwarka. We want a flat for a flat or compensation at current market rates,” he added.

Hem Chandra Mishra (43), another resident, was driving to his house from his office that evening when he heard that an adjacent flat was among those that had collapsed. His wife and two children – a 12-year-old son and a six-year-old daughter – were at their fifth-floor house. “That 20-minute drive was nerve-wracking. We were all in shock. I told my wife to quickly rush downstairs to safety. My children are still traumatised by the incident. We can see our old house daily, and it serves as a painful reminder. We survived, but for months, we are staying in a flat in the same society with only bare essentials,” he said.

Mishra said he had taken a loan of Rs 65 lakh to purchase the apartment. “We spent so much on the interiors of the house as well. We want to be fairly compensated. The probe by the administration has been an eyewash,” he added.

The spokesperson for Chintels could not be reached for comment. Last month, CBI lodged an FIR against the chairman and managing director of Chintels India Pvt Ltd and took over the probe.