Paharganj collapse: Have no place to stay, say building residents

The municipal corporation demolished certain sections deemed dangerous on Friday. Amit Kumar, PRO (MCD), said: “The exact cause of the collapse has not yet been determined yet. We are demolishing a part of the building which is imminently dangerous.”

Suraj, a furniture store worker who lived in the building, said he was at work at the time and his 10 family members were rescued. “Though this area has old buildings, something like this has never happened before… Since the collapse, we have all been in a desperate situation. Nobody has contacted us offering help, be it a politician or authorities. We have no permanent place to stay.”

Another resident, Shashi, said, “I work as a daily wager and have been living in this building for many years now. Now I can’t take my family to another accommodation as we don’t have enough money to pay more rent.” She said her elderly mother is currently living at the local mandir.

She added that all their possessions are under the rubble: “We have been wearing the same clothes since yesterday. We don’t even have proper access to food and water.”

Suraj said, “My brother’s children can’t go to school, all their books and school necessities are inside.”

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Another resident, Chanchal, said she was inside the building when the collapse took place. “It was past 3 pm and I was making food for my 15-year-old son, who had returned from school… It was very scary… My husband passed away five months ago, and now we are homeless.”

Residents also alleged the building owner disappeared after the incident. On Thursday, DCP (West) Shweta Chauhan had said, “The premises have been barricaded. MCD has also been asked to survey the condition of the surrounding buildings to avoid untoward incidents in the future.”