Delhi building collapse: MCD takes action on five officials, to seal 15 buildings

A day after the collapse of a four-storey building in Mustafabad left 11 people dead, the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) on Sunday took action against five errant officials and identified 15 vulnerable buildings in the locality for sealing action, officials familiar with the development said.

The civic body has also decided to demolish the building located next to the collapsed building to prevent risk to public safety, officials said.

“MCD has taken strict action against its staff found involved in misconduct. A junior engineer, who was earlier posted in the area from March 2019 to August 2021, where the building collapse happened and faced multiple disciplinary proceedings in the past, was removed from service. Action has also been taken against three more officers who are either removed from service or compulsorily retired. Further, the junior engineer who was presently posted in the area from November 2024 has been issued a show cause notice. He has been posted out from the building department for the time being so that a fair probe can be done,” the MCD said in a statement.

MCD, identifying the collapsed building by its address D-26, Shakti Vihar, Gali No. 1, Nehru Vihar, said it was a part of the unauthorised colony and the civic body does not sanction any building plan in unauthorised colonies. The colony has buildings rising to the fifth and sixth floors. “It is indeed a moot point how such a colony with massive unauthorised construction mushroomed and that too with buildings having fifth and sixth floors. It deserves a detailed inquiry,” MCD said.

According to the report of the zonal authorities, the building that collapsed was old, and the owners and violators sometimes construct a building and then “keep on adding floor after floor without bothering at all about public safety and load bearing capacity. This is highly risky. The MCD has therefore decided to survey and take action/ seal such high-rise illegal buildings.”

An MCD official, requesting anonymity, said: “The property adjacent to the collapsed building was found dangerous and issued a demolition order on March 25. Now, MCD has decided to demolish the building at the earliest to prevent any further risk to public safety.”

“We will continue the survey to identify and seal buildings with five or more floors, as the structural safety of such constructions in densely populated areas is highly questionable,” the MCD said.